[tech_nofounder]

  It's pretty rare to see that kind of effort be paid
  back my a cuckoo maneuver like this. You owe your
  job to this guy, have some decency.

I appreciate yours as good generic advice. Like a few other posters, you're (understandably) viewing this as a lone cowboy jockeying to replace an otherwise well-qualified and conscientious leader, with the limited and somewhat filtered information I've given.

But we are being vastly too charitable to our imaginary subject. He's already been functionally banished by the team, and rarely comes in to the office. So the question is more about how to deal with an already-acknowledged lame duck, and its effect on the team, given my pay grade.

I didn't intend to follow up further because I've gotten what I needed here (thanks again!). But I wanted to try to restore some of your faith in the world that there is one less cowboy out there. I hope seeing that I'm anonymously seeking advice and not doing something brash is also some sign of that..