Donald Rumsfeld
Donald Rumsfeld
Donald Henry Rumsfeldis an American politician and businessman. Rumsfeld served as the 13th Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford, and as the 21st Secretary of Defense from 2001 to 2006 under President George W. Bush. He is both the youngest and the second oldestperson to have served as Secretary of Defense. Additionally, Rumsfeld was a three-term U.S. Congressman from Illinois, Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity, Counsellor to the President, the United States Permanent...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionPolitician
Date of Birth9 July 1932
CityEvanston, IL
CountryUnited States of America
I think what you are seeing is the Iraqi people, for the first time, wrestling with very tough, fundamental issues that are important to them, to their future, reflecting the history of the country. They've been proceeding in a very orderly, peaceful way,
Secretary Powell and I agree on every single issue that has ever been before this administration except for those instances where Colin's still learning.
When you raise issues with the President, try to come away with both that decision and also a precedent. Pose issues so as to evoke broader policy guidance. This can help to answer a range of similar issues likely to arise later.
Don't automatically obey Presidential directives if you disagree or if you suspect he hasn't considered key aspects of the issue.
I have been doing a number of things with respect to national security and foreign policy issues in the intervening years, and I look forward to it, ... I really do. It's a fine institution, and there are wonderful people there.
These proposals have nothing to do with that, ... These proposals have to do with organizational arrangements within the Department of Defense that put a focus on the important issues relating to space which have been spread throughout the department in a way that has made it difficult to get the right kind of focus and the right kind of emphasis.
I think that anytime wrongdoing occurs, it's important that that wrongdoing be reported. And I think that's appropriate. Now, who one reports that to -- the authorities -- is one thing or somebody else is another. But I'm not knowledgeable enough to be in a position to judge it,
I think it's reasonable to expect that violence could, again, increase for a time, as it did during the last elections,
is committed to helping you as you take control of your country and make the transition from tyranny to freedom and self-government.
People are dead, and that's unfortunate, ... People need to be very careful about what they say just as people need to be careful about what they do.
people all across the spectrum, insurgents and opponents, people kind of leaning that way, people in the middle, people leaning toward the government and then the government.
Our hope is that as we build up Iraqi forces we will be able to relieve the stress on our forces and see a reduction in coalition forces over some period of time, probably post-Iraqi election.
We're capable of winning decisively in one and swiftly defeating in the case of the other. And let there be no doubt about it.
We figure we may still have that many people on the rolls. But of the ones that are trained and equipped, the number now looks to be, the latest number -- last week it was 105,000 -- now it looks to be 95,000, that is to say that are trained and equipped,