When I read that Donald Rumsfeld died on June 29 at age 88 in Taos, N.M., I had mixed feelings about a complex man who had a home in St. Michaels and rode high during many years spent in the top echelons of government in the nation’s Capital.
During his career holding top jobs in Republican administrations over a period of 50 years, he employed a relentless work ethic, great intellect, driving ambition and a combative personality in serving as a member of Congress, a chief of staff to a president and twice as the Secretary of Defense. His achievements coincided with a personal style that earned him enemies, including members of Congress.
What intrigued me too was his bitter attitude toward an Ivy League education, aimed particularly at those whom he considered entitled and elitist. Ironically, he was a graduate of Princeton University, which he attended on an ROTC scholarship, and where he was on the wrestling team.
When he and his wife Joyce moved to St. Michaels, they mixed and mingled with many people, impressing them with their down-to earth manner. He left his reputed irascibility elsewhere.
Extremely successful in government and the corporate world, he sought results and considered the status quo an impediment that must be overcome. He confronted bureaucratic inertia with a vengeance.
Spending six years as Secretary of Defense under President George W. Bush, he left government service in late 2006 for the final time amid a barrage of unstinted criticism over his leadership during the Iraqi war and its aftermath. He came across as arrogant and dogmatic, perceived as failing to respond aggressively and strategically to the insurgencies that materialized after the toppling of Saddam Hussein.
He opposed a troop surge that many thought, rightly so, would stanch the mounting number of American deaths.
A lighting rod for unceasing criticism, Rumsfeld remained loyal to President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, shouldering public condemnation without sharing the blame with his bosses. As he well knew, Washington can be an awfully cruel place to serve as a public servant.
In the years leading up to his exit, he uttered unfortunate comments that seemed to discount the growing crescendo of complaints, publicly appearing dismissive of military deficiencies such as unhardened Humvees frequently destroyed by improvised explosive devices (IEDs). His acerbic manner created a host of detractors, to his detriment and eventual dismissal by President Bush.
Viewed as a whole body of work, Rumsfeld’s career was truly outstanding, marked by continually elevated positions of responsibility. He never shied away from difficult missions, such as overseeing the Department of Defense after the Sept. 11, 2001, attack on America by Al Qaeda. When the Pentagon was struck by one of the four hijacked aircraft, he helped evacuate DoD personnel to waiting ambulances.
Our government leaders are flawed, as is true of low and determined human beings, as it is of the high and mighty. Donald Rumsfeld responded magnificently, albeit imperfectly, during his demanding career at the epicenter of our federal government.
His judgment in owning a home in the Eastern Shore was impeccable. Many recall him fondly.
Columnist Howard Freedlander retired in 2011 as Deputy State Treasurer of the State of Maryland. Previously, he was the executive officer of the Maryland National Guard. He also served as community editor for Chesapeake Publishing, lastly at the Queen Anne’s Record-Observer. In retirement, Howard serves on the boards of several non-profits on the Eastern Shore, Annapolis and Philadelphia.
Jonathon Powers says
I MET MR.RUMSFELD WHILE HE WAS DINING WITH HIS WIFE IN SAINT MICHAELS. THE FIRST THING HE DID BEFORE WE COULD START TALKING WAS TO CORDIALLY INTRODUCE HIS WIFE.
THE MAN HAD HIS PRIOITIES STRAIGHT. I LIKED HIM FROM THE START.
JON POWERS
SAINT MICHAELS
Howard Freedlander says
Thank you, Jon. He and his wife had been married 60 years.
Dan Watson says
In my opinion he and Chaney–and Bush ii of course–were responsible for the greatest military blunder in American History. And the needless deaths of tens of thousands, destruction untold. No fond memories here.
Howard Freedlander says
Thank you, Dan. Many share your opinion.
Craig Fuller says
Very thoughtful and insightful commentary on one of America’s real leaders. I had the good fortune to know him. And, maybe, the good fortune to not have worked for him. Although, I am certain I would have learned much even with his demanding and tough demeanor. He contemplated options. Selected the course he thought best for the country, regardless of political consequences to himself, and vigorously pursued what he thought was right. The nation needs more who serve with his intellect, passion and energy.
Howard, you made me think about a document I first saw many years ago. It was something Don Rumsfeld was encouraged to write down called “Rumsfeld’s Rules.” The first version is dated 1974 with revisions made in 2001. Here is a link to the “Rules” — https://clf1.info/RumsfeldRules
Thanks for sharing your perspective!
Howard Freedlander says
Thank you, Craig. He stood his ground even when it was shifting under him. He was a man of conviction, unswayed by criticism that may have been justified.
Jim Richardson says
Respectfully, I have to disagree.
As a Vietnam combat veteran, I decided if I ever were dining in a local restaurant and Donald Rumsfeld walked in, I would immediately ask the waiter for my check and leave. Fortunately, I never found myself in that situation.
I firmly believe that under his direction, along with Bush and Cheney’s, to torture prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, a prison Rumsfeld once called “a world class operation,” was a despicable act that was totally unAmerican and against the United Nations rules of combat. This, as well as other highly questionable military actions he sanctioned during the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars, qualifies him as a true war criminal. I will not miss him.
Howard Freedlander says
Thank you, Jim. He often pursued controversial courses of action. The Guantanamo Bay prison was a reaction, perhaps a questionable one, to the overriding revulsion in our country toward the horrendous assault on our homeland on 9/11.
Al Sikes says
Howard, I appreciate your few words that recall his government years. I knew Don but from a much different perspective. While I was at the FCC and moving HDTV standards from analog to digital I met with him several times. He was CEO of General Instruments and quite confident in their digital imaging intellectual property. Here is how the NYT characterized it: “Two years ago, many experts said it couldn’t be done. But a small band of engineers here has succeeded in building the first working prototype of a digital high-definition television system.” He was helping to lead the revival of American imaging technology. Al