Quicknation    Donald Rumsfeld

Images of Donald Rumsfeld: G Y AOL AV MSN Books of Donald Rumsfeld: B

Donald Rumsfeld results from: AltaVista A9 AOL Clusty Gigablast Google Lycos MSN Teoma Wisenut Yahoo

Donald Rumsfeld (born July 9, 1932Donald Rumsfeld is a US politician currently serving as the 21st United States Secretary of Defense, since January 20, 2001, under President George W. Bush. He is the oldest person to have held that position, and was also the youngest when he served as the 13th Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford. Rumsfeld also served four terms in the United States House of Representatives and as an official in numerous federal commissions and councils.

Rumsfeld married the former Joyce Pierson in 1954. They have three children and six grandchildren.

table

He was born in Evanston, Illinois to George Donald Rumsfeld and Jeannette Huster, of German descent (his grandfather was originally from Bremen in Northern Germany). Donald Rumsfeld graduated from New Trier High School and attended Princeton University on academic and NROTC scholarships (BA, 1954) where he was an accomplished amateur wrestler and served in the United States Navy (1954-57) as a Naval aviator. While there, he was roommates with Frank Carlucci. He then went on to attend and subsequently drop out of Georgetown University Law Center (1957). That same year, during the Eisenhower Administration, he served as Administrative Assistant to a Congressman from Ohio. After a stint with investment banking firm A. G. Becker from 1960 to 1962, he was elected to the United States House of Representatives from Illinois in 1962, at the age of 30, and was re-elected in 1964, 1966, and 1968. Rumsfeld is an Eagle Scout and recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from the Boy Scouts of America.

Rumsfeld resigned from Congress in 1969 during his fourth term to serve in the Nixon Administration as Director of the United States Office of Economic Opportunity, Assistant to the President, and a member of the President's Cabinet (1969-1970); Counselor to the President, Director of the Economic Stabilization Program; and member of the President's Cabinet (1971-1972).

In 1973, he left Washington, DC, to serve as U.S. ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) in Brussels, Belgium (1973-1974).

In August 1974, he was called back to Washington, DC, to serve in the Ford Administration successively as Chairman of the transition to the Presidency of Gerald R. Ford (1974); White House Chief of Staff member of the President's Cabinet (1974-1975); and the 13th U.S. Secretary of Defense (1975-1977). During this period he oversaw the transition to an all volunteer military and was instrumental in increasing the power of the military within the administration and at the expense of the CIA and Henry Kissinger. This was accomplished by promulgating the view that the Soviet Union was increasing defense spending and pursuing secret weapons programs, and that the proper response was a re-escalation of the arms race. Some say that this view was in direct contrast to CIA and generally accepted reports on the declining state of the Soviet economy, and the earlier success of Richard Nixon in establishing Detente (referring to a thawing of the Cold War) with the Soviet Union.

As part of the Ford administration, Rumsfeld helped formulate the White House response to the death of CIA scientist Frank Olson.

In 1976, a military recruit in New Jersey died from a flu that experts speculated might be the "swine flu". At Rumsfeld's urging, the Ford administration quickly produced and distributed large number of doses of the vaccine. However, some batches were contaminated and 52 people died while 600 fell ill. The program was stopped and no got swine flu.

In 1977, Rumsfeld was awarded the nation's highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

From 1977 to 1985 Rumsfeld served as Chief Executive Officer, President, and then Chairman of G.D. Searle Company, a worldwide pharmaceutical company whose products included, among others, the oral contraceptive pill Enovid. It was under Rumsfeld that Searle got FDA approval for the controversial artificial sweetener, aspartame, which it marketed as NutraSweet. Some believe that the approval of aspartame was influenced by conflict of interest and that persons involved in the aspartame approval process were rewarded with high paying jobs or consulting positions. During his tenure at Searle, Rumsfeld led a financial turnaround of the company that earned him awards as the Outstanding Chief Executive Officer in the Pharmaceutical Industry from the (1981). Rumsfeld is believed to have earned around US$12 million from the sale of Searle to Monsanto.

From 1985 to 1990 he was in private business. During his business career, Rumsfeld continued public service in a variety of posts, including:

"Rumsfeld and New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani speak at the site of the World Trade Center disaster in lower Manhattan, on November 14, 2001." Rumsfeld and New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani speak at the site of the World Trade Center disaster in lower Manhattan, on November 14, 2001.Member of the President's General Advisory Committee on Arms Control - Reagan Administration (1982 - 1986);Chairman of the U.S. Commission to Assess National Security Space Management and Organization (2000)."Rumsfeld, at the time Ronald Reagan's special envoy to the Middle East, meeting with Saddam Hussein during a visit to Baghdad, Iraq in 1983. Video frame capture, see the complete video here " Rumsfeld, at the time Ronald Reagan's special envoy to the Middle East, meeting with Saddam Hussein during a visit to Baghdad, Iraq in 1983. Video frame capture, see the complete video here

Rumsfeld served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of General Instrument Corporation from 1990 to 1993. A leader in broadband transmission, distribution, and access control technologies for cable, satellite and terrestrial broadcasting applications, the company pioneered the development of the first all-digital high definition television (HDTV) technology. After taking the company public and returning it to profitability, Rumsfeld returned to private business in late 1993. From January 1997 until being sworn in as the 21st Secretary of Defense in January 2001, Rumsfeld served as Chairman of Gilead Sciences, Inc. He was also chair of the RAND Corporation.

Rumsfeld sat on the board of ABB, a European engineering giant based in Zurich from 1990 to 2001, earning $190,000 a year. In 2000 this company sold two light water nuclear reactors to North Korea, a country he now regards as part of the "axis of evil" and which has been targeted for regime change by Washington because of its efforts to build nuclear weapons. The sale of the nuclear technology was a high-profile contract. ABB's then chief executive, Goran Lindahl, visited North Korea in November 1999 to announce ABB's "wide-ranging, long-term cooperation agreement" with the communist government. Mr Rumsfeld's office said that the defence secretary did not "recall it being brought before the board at any time". A spokesman for ABB told the Guardian that "board members were informed about the project which would deliver systems and equipment for light water reactors".

During his period as Reagan's Special Envoy to the Middle East (1184), Rumsfeld was the main conduit for crucial American military intelligence, hardware and strategic advice to Saddam Hussein, then fighting Iran in the Iran-Iraq war. During this period, US policy supported Iraq, believing it to be a useful buffer against Iran's new religious government, although the United States had originally been hesitant to work with a Soviet client state. When he visited on December 19-20, 1983, he and Saddam Hussein had a 90 minute discussion which covered Syria's occupation of Lebanon, preventing Syrian and Iranian expansion, preventing arms sales to Iran by foreign countries, increasing Iraqi oil production via a possible new oil pipeline across Jordan. Not mentioned was Iraqi production and use of chemical weapons. The Iranian government had cited several Iraqi air and ground chemical weapons attacks in the preceding two months, and the Iranian news agency had reported the use of chemical weapons as early as 1981. The US State Department first condemned the use of chemical weapons in the war on March 5, 1984, two days before the ICRC confirmed Iranian allegations. During his bid for the Republican nomination in 1988, Rumsfeld stated that restoring full relations to Iraq was one of his best achievements.

Rumsfeld's civic activities included service as a member of the National Academy of Public Administration and a member of the boards of trustees of the Gerald R. Ford Foundation, the Eisenhower Exchange Fellowships, the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, and the National Park Foundation. He was also a member of the U.S.Russia Business Forum and Chairman of the Congressional Leadership's National Security Advisory Group.

"Rumsfeld, then-National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, and then-Secretary of State Colin Powell listen to President George W. Bush speak." Rumsfeld, then-National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, and then-Secretary of State Colin Powell listen to President George W. Bush speak.

Rumsfeld was a founder and active member of the Project for the New American Century, whose goal is to "promote American global leadership" and which in September 2000 proposed to invade Iraq. He signed the 1998 PNAC Letter sent to President Bill Clinton advocating the use of force in Iraq to "protect our vital interests in the gulf".

Appointed defense secretary soon after President George W. Bush took office in 2001, Rumsfeld immediately announced a series of sweeping reviews intended to plot the transformation of the U.S. military into a lighter, more nimble force. These studies, led by Pentagon analyst Andrew Marshall, drew widespread resistance from the military services and members of Congress, who worried that Rumsfeld would cancel pet projects. (Eventually, he succeeded in killing the Army's Crusader howitzer and its Comanche armed scout helicopter.) Media reports in the summer of 2001 ran under headlines like "Will Rumsfeld Be The First Of Bush's Cabinet To Go?"

Rumsfeld led the military planning and execution of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan and the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Rumsfeld pushed hard to send as small a force as possible to both conflicts, a concept codified as the Rumsfeld doctrine.

Rumsfeld's plan resulted in a lightning invasion that took Baghdad in well under a month with very few American casualties. There were almost no preparations for the occupation of Iraq that followed. Many government buildings, plus major museums, electrical generation infrastructure, and even oil equipment were looted and vandalized during the transition from the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime to the establishment of the Coalition Provisional Authority. Critics further complained that there was no plan to deal with the existing Iraqi armed forces. They were disbanded, leaving hundreds of thousands of armed and unemployed men in the country. A violent insurrection began shortly after the occupation started.

After the German and French governments voiced opposition to invading Iraq, Rumsfeld labeled these countries as part of "Old Europe", implying that countries which supported the war were part of a newer, modern Europe.

had been so taken by Rumsfeld's various remarks that it once held a regular slot called "The Donald Rumsfeld Soundbite of the Week" in which they played his most amusing comment from that week. Rumsfeld himself is said to have found the slot "hilarious." Rumsfeld's penchant for talking with his hands also made him the butt of jokes, including a series portraying him as a martial arts master.

Bush retained Rumsfeld after his re-election, which raised eyebrows among Democrats and some Republicans. In December of that year, Rumsfeld came under fire after a town-hall meeting with U.S. troops where he responded to a soldier's comments about inferior military equipment by saying "you go to war with the army you have." The question was later discovered to be planted by Lee Pitts, a military reporter from the . That same month there was also criticism about his use of an Autopen signature machine to sign the condolence letters to the families of the soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan (rather than signing the letters personally, as President Bush does).

As Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld has come under fire from critics who argue that his decision to detain alleged-enemy combatants at Guantanamo Bay is a violation of the Geneva Convention and runs counter to American legal traditions.

Some critics have also argued that Rumsfeld should be held responsible for alleged war crimes committed by the U.S. military in both Afghanistan and Iraq. Several publications, including called for his resignation following the Abu Ghraib scandal.

Some Republicans have called for Rumsfeld's replacement after Bush's re-election due to what many perceive as inadequate troop strength (Rumsfeld doctrine) used during the invasion of Iraq.

He is also a co-founder of Project for the New American Century which some believe developed plans for attacking Iraq prior to the attacks occurring 9-11.

After the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in April 2003, Rumsfeld attempted to explain the looting that followed as an exercise of freedom: "It’s untidy. Freedom’s untidy and free people are free to commit crimes and make mistakes and do bad things."[1] This explanation drew many critics, including Indian novelist Arundhati Roy, who asked famously, "Did any know that Donald Rumsfeld was an anarchist? I wonder - did he hold the same view during the riots in Los Angeles following the beating of Rodney King?"[2]

Donald Rumsfeld was Chairman of the Board of Gilead Sciences who is the developer of Tamiflu which is used in the treatment of bird flu. Several articles including USA Today, and CNN have published information on how it is implied that Donald Rumsfeld profits from sales of Tamiflu.

Rumsfeld also stirred controversy by quarreling for months with the CIA over who had the authority to fire Hellfire missiles from Predator drones. According to the 911 Commission Report, the argument delayed the program for months (pp. 189-90, 211-214). Daniel Benjamin and Steven Simon note:

dlThese quarrels kept the Predator from being used against al Qaeda.... The delay infuriated the terrorist hunters at the CIA. One individual who was at the center of the action called this episode "typical" and complained that "Rumsfeld never missed an opportunity to fail to cooperate. The fact is, the secretary of defense is an obstacle. He has helped the terrorists.

Throughout the war on terror as of 2006, Rumsfeld has often been accused of giving rhetorical answers to serious questions.

"We take the world like you find it; and Israel is a small state with a small population. It’s a democracy and it exists in a neighborhood that in many -- over a period of time has opined from time to time that they’d prefer it not be there and they’d like it to be put in the sea. And Israel has opined that it would prefer not to get put in the sea, and as a result, over a period of decades, it has arranged itself so it hasn’t been put in the sea.""Our task, your task... is to try to connect the dots before something happens. People say, 'Well, where's the smoking gun?' Well, we don't want to see a smoking gun from a weapon of mass destruction.""Beware when any idea is promoted primarily because it is "bold, exciting, innovative, and new." There are many ideas that are "bold, exciting, innovative and new," but also foolish.""(Cluster bombs are) being used on frontline al Qaeda and Taliban troops to try to kill them is why we're using them, to be perfectly blunt.""I'm hopeful that some will surrender. I suspect some won't, and I suspect the result from that will be that the opposition forces will kill them.""I think we ought to have a new rule: You can ask two questions, and then we can pick the one we want to answer.""Charlie, the answer to the question "Is he alive or dead" -- the answer is yes, he is alive or dead (laughter)." (referring to bin Laden)"I mean, let's face it. They weren't exactly baking cookies in those caves." (in a response to why U.S. bombers killed people hiding in caves)"You go to war with the army you have. They’re not the Army you might want or wish to have at a later time.""Well, Dick, calibrate me, but the first thing I'd say is I don't believe you have the war plan -- (laughter) -- a fact which does not make me unhappy (laughter).""I think what you'll find, I think what you'll find is, whatever it is we do substantively, there will be near-perfect clarity as to what it is. And it will be known, and it will be known to the Congress, and it will be known to you, probably before we decide it, but it will be known." (February 28, 2003)"Reports that say that something hasn't happened are always interesting to me, because as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns - the ones we don't know we don't know." (February 12, 2002)"Things will not be necessarily continuous. The fact that they are something other than perfectly continuous ought not to be characterized as a pause. There will be some things that people will see. There will be some things that people won't see. And life goes on." (October 12, 2001)"Oh my goodness gracious, what you can buy off the Internet in terms of overhead photography! A trained ape can know an awful lot of what is going on in this world, just by punching on his mouse for a relatively modest cost!" (June 9, 2001)"Once in a while, I'm standing here, doing something. And I think, 'What in the world am I doing here?' It's a big surprise." (May 16, 2001)"If you waited until you could do everything before you did anything, you probably would end up doing nothing.""Before long, I suspect that those responsible for these acts will encounter British steel. Their kind of steel has an uncommon strength. It does not bend or break." (a response to the 7 July 2005 London bombings)"Stuff happens." (April 2003, commenting on the looting, rioting and general mayhem that followed the fall of Baghdad)"...or the people who attacked the United States in New York, shot down the plane over Pennsylvania and attacked the Pentagon" (a possible slip up referring to the September 11, 2001 attacks[3])(speaking about disorder in Iraq, April 2003) "It's untidy, and freedom's untidy. Free people are free to make mistakes and commit crimes and do bad things. They're also free to live their lives and do wonderful things." "Donald Rumsfeld meets with Iraq Governing Council President Abdel Aziz Hakim in Baghdad, December 2003 - " Donald Rumsfeld meets with Iraq Governing Council President Abdel Aziz Hakim in Baghdad, December 2003 -

During a December 8, 2004, town-hall meeting with U.S. troops at Camp Buehring, Kuwait, Rumsfeld responded to a soldier's comments about inferior military equipment by saying "you go to war with the army you have," a comment some characterized as needlessly cold. Rumsfeld's full answer:

lockquote

I talked to the General coming out here about the pace at which the vehicles are being armored. They have been brought from all over the world, wherever they’re not needed, to a place here where they are needed. I’m told that they are being – the Army is – I think it’s something like 400 a month are being done. And it’s essentially a matter of physics. It isn’t a matter of money. It isn’t a matter on the part of the Army of desire. It’s a matter of production and capability of doing it.

As you know, you go to war with the Army you have. They’re not the Army you might want or wish to have at a later time. Since the Iraq conflict began, the Army has been pressing ahead to produce the armor necessary at a rate that they believe – it’s a greatly expanded rate from what existed previously, but a rate that they believe is the rate that is all that can be accomplished at this moment.

I can assure you that General "Dick" Schoomaker and the leadership in the Army and certainly General Whitcomb are sensitive to the fact that not every vehicle has the degree of armor that would be desirable for it to have, but that they’re working at it at a good clip. It’s interesting, I’ve talked a great deal about this with a team of people who’ve been working on it hard at the Pentagon. And if you think about it, you can have all the armor in the world on a tank and a tank can be blown up. And you can have an up-armored humvee and it can be blown up. And you can go down and, the vehicle, the goal we have is to have as many of those vehicles as is humanly possible with the appropriate level of armor available for the troops. And that is what the Army has been working on.

Center for Security Policy: Longtime associate; winner of the CSP's 1998 "Keeper of the Flame" award (5)Project for the New American Century: Signed PNAC's founding statement of principles as well as two policy letters on IraqRumsfeld Fighting Technique - Rumsfeld's penchant for talking with his hands has made him the butt of jokes, including a series portraying him as a martial arts master.