Posted on 02/17/2006 7:46:06 PM PST by FairOpinion
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, in his first public faceoff with Rep. John P. Murtha since the Pennsylvania Democrat called for a quick U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq, rejected yesterday the congressman's charge that the U.S. cannot win the war. At a hearing on the Pentagon budget before the House Appropriations Committee's subcommittee on defense, Mr. Murtha, the panel's top Democrat, renewed his November call for a pullout.
"Where I disagree is fighting terrorism in Iraq," Mr. Murtha said. "I think that we're inciting terrorism, and that's my personal opinion. ... When you go in ... with the tactics we have to use to protect American lives, you're going to create enemies. And that's what we've done."
Mr. Rumsfeld listened as Mr. Murtha leveled his pessimistic assessment and then heard a second round of attacks from Rep. David R. Obey, Wisconsin Democrat.
The defense secretary then suspended his rehearsed opening statement and responded.
"The idea that you should paint a picture and hang crepe over it, that everything's horrible in Iraq, is not true," Mr. Rumsfeld said, citing three elections last year that created an Iraqi constitution and parliament.
"Now, is it a pretty picture? Has it been done instantaneously? No. Is there a lot of tugging and hauling and politicking? You bet there is over there," he said. "And are we gong to end up with something that we stand back and look at it and say, 'Gee, that's a pretty picture?' No. It's going to be an Iraqi picture. It's not going to be an American picture. But it's going to get done."
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
The Dems can never be trusted with the safety of Americans.
I've seen some clips of Rummy's comments on various issues recently - this guy is great, he knows how to hit back, hard and concise.
Rumsfeld should be on TV every day -- he even knows exactly how the handle the jackals of the press corps.
I am privilaged then, as on my cable Cox Cable in SE Arizona I get the Pentagon Channel.
Leave Murtha alone---for a long time, we can hope.
I love the way he comments by asking a question and then answering it. It's just so....Rummy-esque!
Be thankful for the dems. Without them as the opposition, the republicans would have fumbled away power years ago.
I've seen some clips of Rummy's comments on various issues recently - this guy is great, he knows how to hit back, hard and concise.
You will only understand the symbolism of the following if you learned
through extraneous history or were old enough to have watched it play out
that Ted Kennedy drove off of a bridge in Massachusetts on his way to an
island with Mary Joe Kopechne in the late 60's.
He did NOT seek help to rescue her when he surfaced. Instead he made his
way to a hotel, called friends and the next morning reported the accident.
She was, needless to say, both dead and wet. Kennedy faced no type of
any censure or reprimand, much less any legal punishment for this negligent
act of manslaughter.
Kennedy power extends wide in that part of America. You have got to the
chutzpah of Rumsfeld.
February 05, 2004
Rumsfeld: Kennedy 'All Wet' About Bush Lies
(5 Feb 2004) -- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told Sen Edward M.
Kennedy yesterday that he was "all wet" when the Senator alleged that the
Bush administration lied about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction to
justify
going to war.
The verbal clash came during Mr. Rumsfeld's testimony at a Senate Armed
Services Committee hearing probing the state of pre-war intelligence.
Sen. Kennedy began his questioning of the Defense Secretary by saying,
"Don't you think some members of the Bush administration should be held
legally accountable for the lies they told about Iraqi weapons, and the
subsequent cover-up?"
"First, with all due respect Senator Kennedy, you're all wet," said Mr.
Rumsfeld . "The administration has not lied or covered up. However, in
general I do believe that when a man commits a crime he should face the
bar
of justice. He should not be allowed to serve in positions of power in our
government, and be hailed as a leader, when the question of his guilt
remains unresolved, if you know what I mean."
"I'm sure I do not know what you mean," Mr. Kennedy said. "But the
American
people deserve to know why you can't find Saddam's weapons of mass
destruction."
"Sometimes things are hard to find, even when you know where they are,"
said
Mr. Rumsfeld. "For example, I've heard of a man who missed a bridge and
drove his car into the water, even though he knew where the bridge was.
And
then sometimes you just keep diving into a problem and despite repeated
efforts, you come up empty handed. That doesn't mean that nothing's
there.
As you know, eventually, the truth comes to light."
Having no further questions, Mr. Kennedy yielded the remainder of his
time.
I couldn't agree more - Rumsfeld is the best asset in the GWB Administration.
Murtha's 15 minutes of fame only lasted about 2 minutes after everybody found out he was a crooked lying fraud.
And it is exactly why the Dems HATE him. They like their Dems hard and biting and their Republicans soft and chewy. They hate when we don't cooperate.
I haven't heard that Kennedy -Rumsfeld exchange. Thanks for posting it.
Rumsfeld is a gem!
http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/bl_rumsfeld_kennedy.htm
...Once again, a satirical text published on the Internet has found its way into broad distribution as a forwarded email and fooled credulous folks into believing it's true. It is not. A quick Google search uncovered the original document on Scott Ott's self-described "daily news satire site," ScrappleFace....
I saw you link later. Thanks.
Well, even if it's not true, it sounds good anyway -- we can wish someone had said that to Kennedy.
Rumsfeld should be President, after W. He's practically the only one fighting back against the Democrats.
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