Donald Rumsfeld Defense Quotations

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.

The president, the secretary of defense and the combatant commanders are never more than a minute or two away from a secure phone. ...Very, very senior people are able to address a matter in real time and ask the right questions and make the right judgments,

There's much less coherence in the Defense Department than there could be if only some of the widely available practices in industry were applied,

If every time two or three people disagreed we changed the secretary of defense of the United States, it would be like a merry-go-round.

You cannot defend against terrorists by hunkering down, ... You simply must go after them. That is the only proper defense is an offense.

I think it's interesting that other countries wonder why they would be increasing their defense effort at the pace they are and yet not acknowledging it, ... That is as interesting as the fact that it's increasing at the pace it is.

I share your hopes and expectations for the Department of Defense and for the armed forces of the United States of America, ... I am an enthusiastic supporter of those goals.

The Secretary of Defense is not a super General or Admiral. His task is to exercise civilian control over the Department for the Commander-in-Chief and the country.

A terrorist can attack at any time at any place using a range of techniques. It is physically impossible to defend at every time in every location against every conceivable technique of terrorism. Therefore, if your goal is to stop it, you cannot stop it by defense. You can only stop it by taking the battle to the terrorists, where they are and going after them.

Based on our early assessments, we believe we've made progress toward eliminating the air defense sites around the country,

normally ministers of defense visit countries where there's that type of activity.