The Daily Howler makes a key point about Beltway careerism that cannot be overlooked with regards to the controversy surrounding Froomkin's exit from the Post [emphasis added]:

Dan Froomkin criticizes the press corps. In the press corps, if you're a liberal, that just isn't done.

Duh. We've explained this bone-simple point for years. If there's one thing you'll never see Dionne or Robinson do, it's criticize their cohort—the coven, the clan. Dionne established this point quite brilliantly all through Campaign 2000. Of course he knew that his cohort was talking all manner of bullsh*t about Gore. (On one or two very tiny occasions, he even tinily said so.) But in the mainstream press corps, liberals don't discuss the mainstream press. That's the price of getting those (very good) jobs. It's also the price of holding them.

UPDATED: Note what WashPost ombudsman Andrew Alexander reported this weekend:

Froomkin said his editors were urging changes in White House Watch, and he acknowledged disagreement over content. For example, he was urged not to do media criticism.

UPDATED: How angry do Beltway scribes get when liberals critique the press? So angry that one scribe called a critic a “dick” on TV.