Donald Rumsfeld, the former Defense Secretary, who ran the Pentagon for former President George W. Bush, has passed away at the age of 88. “It is with deep sadness that we share the news of the passing of Donald Rumsfeld, an American statesman and devoted husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather,” his family announced Wednesday.
Rumsfeld died surrounded by his family and in his beloved Taso, New Mexico. His family also said, “History may remember him for his extraordinary accomplishments over six decades of public service, but for those who knew him best and whose lives were forever changed as a result, we will remember his unwavering loves for his wife Joyce, his family and friends, and the integrity he brought to a life dedicated to country.”
In charge of the U.S. military for most of George W. Bush’s presidency, Rumsfeld was stubborn and brash, famously dismissing widespread looting after U.S. troops captured Baghdad by quipping, “Stuff happens.”
For millions who took to the streets to denounce the war in Iraq, Rumsfeld and vice president Dick Cheney were emblematic of what was seen as excesses in Bush’s “war on terror,” including the indefinite detention of suspects in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and the abuse of Iraqis by U.S. jailers at Abu Ghraib prison.
In a statement, Bush called his defense secretary, whom he defiantly kept in his cabinet until rival Democrats won control of Congress in 2006, “an exemplary public servant and a very good man. A man of intelligence, integrity and almost inexhaustible energy. He was a faithful steward of our armed forces, and the United States of America is safer and better off for his service.”
Bush also recalled, “On the morning of September 11, 2001, Donald Rumsfeld ran to the fire at the Pentagon to assist the wounded and ensure the safety of survivors. For the next five years, he was in steady service as a wartime secretary of defense, a duty he carried out with strength, skill and honor.”
Former Vice President Cheney and his wife, Lynne, said in their own statement, “We are so sorry to learn that the world has lost Don Rumsfeld, but sorry most of all for the great empty space we know his passing has left in the lives of his family. During some of our nation’s most serious challenges, he was entrusted by presidents to help guide America through turbulent times. He did so with strength and resolve that came to embody who he was as a person.”
God Bless his family and God Bless the U.S.A.
By Julio Cahn
Saving the Republic with one truth bomb at a time!
That should be TAOS NM Sir.