Just want to take a minute to mark a huge moment in DC. The legendary @danbalz is retiring from full-time work at the @washingtonpost after 47 remarkable years. I had the great privilege of sitting next to Dan in the Post newsroom and working with him for years. He is the last of a generation of gold-standard political reporters who inspired all of us who have followed. You will never find a smarter, wiser, fairer, more insightful, more generous, more thoroughly decent colleague. He is a follow-the-facts, knock-on-every-door reporter who manages to be open minded and tough minded at the same time. In a flash-and-bang era, Dan showed us day in and day out that there is no substitute for hard work and expertise. @mikeallen writes that Dan is "known for civility and rigor," which is absolutely right. Plus he's the nicest guy in the business. I've always wanted to be Dan Balz when I grow up, but the truth is there's only one and we will miss his byline in the paper.