And the winner of the pool to predict the date of Joe’s dropout is . . .

And the winner of the pool to predict the date of Joe’s dropout is . . .

Readers will recall that a couple of weeks ago, I started a pool to predict Joe’s dropout date. First prize was a day or evening of hiking and drinking with me around, or in, Aspen. (There’s no truth to the rumor that second prize was two days, and third prize was three.)

The pool filled, the dam burst, and I was deluged with more predictions than I can shake a Speedo at, through my two websites and by direct email correspondence.

My own prediction was too early by over a week, so at least I won’t be drinking alone.

The winning prediction was within about four hours. The winner predicted 10 a.m. on July 21.

Unless you’re as somnolent as Joe, you know he quit not with a bang, but a whimper. No press conference, no Oval Office teleprompter speech, not even a hug or a handshake. Just a tweet. To my knowledge, the guy is still holed up in his basement in Delaware; there’s been no public appearance.

Much of the White House staff learned of his walkaway not from Joe or any other private announcement, but from the tweet.

It’s inconceivable that Joe himself wrote the tweet, so at this point it’s still just hearsay. It’s possible that Joe will wake up tomorrow and tell us that his Twitter account was hacked, Anthony Weiner style.

But the contest panel of judges – er, judge – has convened, reached a quorum, and unanimously decided that we’ll go with July 21 as the quitting date, at least for now.  

I would love to give you the name of the winner, so that he can enjoy not just the prize but also the adulation of millions and perhaps an interview with Andrew Breitbart. But I won’t reveal his name until he permits me to.

You see, not all my readers want to be identified as such. Go figure.

But the winner knows who he is. I invite him in a comment to give me permission to let everyone else know who he is as well.

Meanwhile, congratulations to this intrepid prognosticator. What’s your prediction for the stock market tomorrow?