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The Cold War was a war, and we won it.

Donald Rumsfeld

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Donald Rumsfeld
Age: 88 †
Born: 1932
Born: July 9
Died: 2021
Died: June 29
Author
Businessperson
Diplomat
Former U.S. Secretary Of Defense
Military Officer
Politician
Chicago
Illinois
Donald Henry Rumsfeld
War
Victory
Cold

More quotes by Donald Rumsfeld

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I am not going to give you a number for it because it's not my business to do intelligent work.
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One of your tasks is to separate the 'personal' from the 'substantive.' The two can become confused, especially if someone rubs the President wrong.
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At 78 years old, I am not surprised at much anymore. Germany has taken divergent positions before, so has France, so has England, so has the US.
Donald Rumsfeld
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The reality is that [Barack] Obama has some 15 countries in the current Libya coalition. President Bush put together close to 50 countries for the Afghan coalition, some 40 countries for the Iraqi coalition, more than 90 countries for the Proliferation Security Initiative and over 90 countries in the Global War on Terror.
Donald Rumsfeld
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I stand for 8-10 hours a day. Why is standing limited to four hours?
Donald Rumsfeld
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Being Vice President is difficult. Don't make it tougher.
Donald Rumsfeld
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Then there are three or four countries that have said they won't do anything. I believe Libya, Cuba and Germany are ones that have indicated they won't help in any respect.
Donald Rumsfeld
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In unanimity there may well be either cowardice or uncritical thinking.
Donald Rumsfeld
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Don't do or say things you would not like to see on the front page of The Washington Post.
Donald Rumsfeld
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When starting at the bottom, be willing to learn from those at the top.
Donald Rumsfeld
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If in doubt, don't. If still in doubt, do what's right.
Donald Rumsfeld
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Certainty without power can be interesting, even amusing. Certainty with power can be dangerous.
Donald Rumsfeld
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Don't be a bottleneck. If a matter is not a decision for the President or you, delegate it. Force responsibility down and out. Find problem areas, add structure and delegate. The pressure is to do the reverse. Resist it.
Donald Rumsfeld
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Preserve the President's options. He may need them.
Donald Rumsfeld
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There will be good moments, and there will be less good moments.
Donald Rumsfeld
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Many people around the President have sizeable egos before entering government, some with good reason. Their new positions will do little to moderate their egos.
Donald Rumsfeld
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If you look ahead 10 years, I wouldn't be a bit surprised if the people of Russia had become fans of missile defence.
Donald Rumsfeld
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Plan backwards as well as forward. Set objectives and trace back to see how to achieve them. You may find that no path can get you there. Plan forward to see where your steps will take you, which may not be clear or intuitive.
Donald Rumsfeld
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I think it's very useful for you folks (reporters) to try your damndest to be precise. And don't repeat things that are inaccurate if you can possibly avoid it. And when you see things that are inaccurate, knock them down -- because there's a bucket of it floating around.
Donald Rumsfeld
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There's another way to phrase that and that is that the absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence. It is basically saying the same thing in a different way. Simply because you do not have evidence that something does exist does not mean that you have evidence that it doesn't exist.
Donald Rumsfeld