I am such an asshole programmer, and I can assure you there's no winning with me and my ilk. You can blame the hiring committee who brought on the asshole, but understand they might've wanted to roll the dice since assholes can move things quickly forwards or backwards. I get Mike Bolton's (Office Space 1999) complaint that he shouldn't have to change when it's the other guy who sucks, but that's kinda the deal with assholes. The non-assholes have to migrate towards other areas that might be less attractive career-wise. Consider from a bottom line perspective however that it's natural for you to take a hit if the asshole's tech chops are all they're cracked up to be.