Biden on thin ice, Walsh may skate

Reports that Labor Secretary and former Boston Mayor Marty Walsh is a finalist for the head of the National Hockey League players’ union is just the latest sign that the bureaucrats are already running from the Biden sinking ship.

It’s a bit unseemly for Walsh — a close buddy of the president — to be openly shopping himself around for a new job but that could be a sign that he desperately wants out as Biden prepares to possibly launch his re-election campaign.

Or maybe Walsh is calculating that Biden won’t survive a special counsel investigation into how classified documents ended up in his garage and office and home.

Walsh has no experience running a players’ union but reports indicate that he is a top choice for the high-paying NHL post.

If he gets the job, Walsh would be the second Cabinet-level official to leave

the Biden White House in the last year. Biden’s science adviser, Eric Lander, left a year ago under a cloud of controversy amid reports that he bullied staffers at the Office of Science and Technology Policy.

And if the classified documents scandal gets worse, look for other Cabinet members to look for new jobs before Biden’s first term expires.

Walsh’s possible departure comes after Biden’s chief of staff Ron Klain quit several weeks ago. He is being replaced by Jeff Zients.

And the latest to exit the Biden administration is Brian Deese, the president’s top economic adviser.

The White House confirmed reports on Thursday that Deese is leaving despite serving in that key economic position for just two years.

Biden has said Deese was “critical” to passing the White House’s $2 trillion American Rescue Plan and was expected to play a major role in the upcoming fight with Republicans over the debt ceiling.

It doesn’t look good when your top economic adviser quits in what could be looming as a recession.

But Walsh leaving would be a bitter blow to Biden, because the two are so personally close. Walsh was even mentioned as a possible chief of staff replacement when Klain left.

The former Boston mayor never really moved to Washington — staying at his Dorchester home when he wasn’t needed in D.C.

Leaving the Cabinet for the NHL union job won’t necessarily end Walsh’s political career — he could still come back to Massachusetts if another statewide elective office or congressional seat becomes

ANDREW HARNIK — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh could be skating over to the National Hockey League players’ union. He’s no stranger to pro athletes. Here he bumped into Tom Brady outside the White House after the Bucs Super Bowl win.