The Secretary Of War
The passing of Secretary Rumsfeld from the political scene is a great loss for America and the War On Terror. His stoic character and calm demeaner made many enemies with the Press Corps and liberal establishment in America and Europe. A man the Left loved to hate was sacrificed upon the alter of appeasement. President Bush feeling the sting of defeat last Tuesday demanded the head of Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and delivered it to his political enemies as a housewarming gift after they breached the walls in both the House and Senate on election night. I will have to put Rumsfeld on par with a Patton or a MacArthur as these men were larger than life figures that the mediocre could no longer tolerate.
Rumsfeld I believe was hated as much as he was due to the fact that he represented the face of victory for the Bush Administration. Just as the Press did not want Americans to celebrate the military and political victories in Iraq and Afghanistan for fear that President Bush would receive great honor they also didn't want Rumsfeld to be shown in a positive light as well. Hence, the Left's call for his departure for nearly 4 years running. By rejecting Rumsfeld, the Press and the Left were rejecting the policies of preemptive warfare against our enemies.
Sadly, the Press and the Left had an ally in their unrelenting propaganda however, in that the United States Army was completely against Rumsfeld because the Secretary of Defense demanded a non-WWII type of an Army for the 21st Century. This meant jettisoning 50 years of Army doctrine that demanded hundreds of thousands of troops and big tanks to fight the Soviet Union and any other enemy for that matter. Rumsfeld demanded a leaner, more flexible US Army along the lines of a Marine Corps that could readily deploy against third world armies and enemies that the Army was not actually designed to fight against. This was a big "no-no" as far as the US Army was concerned. Couple that fact with Rumsfeld's tenure in the Navy and his promotion of Peter Pace, a Marine Corps General, to be Chief of the Joint Chiefs this was indeed too much for the Army to stomach. Interservice rivalry is still a very big problem in the United States Military and only gets worse the higher you go. The US Army is the Praetorian Guard of the American military establishment and if they move against you politically then its only a matter of time before you are shown the exit door.
I believe Rumsfeld was a brave and honerable man to which history will reward him his due regard. I know most people will say I'm nuts but I refuse to acquiese to the "conventional wisdom" regarding one of the greatest men that served in the Bush Administration. Mark my words, more troops in Iraq is a false hope. Rumsfeld knew this and was a marked man politically when he demanded more than the Army was willing to give him.
Sic transit gloria mundi. Sic transit gloria mundi.
Rumsfeld I believe was hated as much as he was due to the fact that he represented the face of victory for the Bush Administration. Just as the Press did not want Americans to celebrate the military and political victories in Iraq and Afghanistan for fear that President Bush would receive great honor they also didn't want Rumsfeld to be shown in a positive light as well. Hence, the Left's call for his departure for nearly 4 years running. By rejecting Rumsfeld, the Press and the Left were rejecting the policies of preemptive warfare against our enemies.
Sadly, the Press and the Left had an ally in their unrelenting propaganda however, in that the United States Army was completely against Rumsfeld because the Secretary of Defense demanded a non-WWII type of an Army for the 21st Century. This meant jettisoning 50 years of Army doctrine that demanded hundreds of thousands of troops and big tanks to fight the Soviet Union and any other enemy for that matter. Rumsfeld demanded a leaner, more flexible US Army along the lines of a Marine Corps that could readily deploy against third world armies and enemies that the Army was not actually designed to fight against. This was a big "no-no" as far as the US Army was concerned. Couple that fact with Rumsfeld's tenure in the Navy and his promotion of Peter Pace, a Marine Corps General, to be Chief of the Joint Chiefs this was indeed too much for the Army to stomach. Interservice rivalry is still a very big problem in the United States Military and only gets worse the higher you go. The US Army is the Praetorian Guard of the American military establishment and if they move against you politically then its only a matter of time before you are shown the exit door.
I believe Rumsfeld was a brave and honerable man to which history will reward him his due regard. I know most people will say I'm nuts but I refuse to acquiese to the "conventional wisdom" regarding one of the greatest men that served in the Bush Administration. Mark my words, more troops in Iraq is a false hope. Rumsfeld knew this and was a marked man politically when he demanded more than the Army was willing to give him.
Sic transit gloria mundi. Sic transit gloria mundi.
posted by Bruce R. McConnell | 5:10 PM
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