The number of ground troops moved near Iraq before the war was decided over months of consultations among Gen. Tommy R. Franks, commander of the war, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff before Mr. Rumsfeld took it to the National Security Council and the president, he said.
"It has been approved by everyone who's had a look at it," he said before one television appearance. "It's been described as an excellent plan. I'd be delighted to take credit for it, but it wouldn't be fair, because it's a product that is essentially General Franks's, but it certainly is the result of a lot of thought from a lot of very fine military planners."
Mr. Rumsfeld's comments, however, diminished what top military officers and even members of his inner circle described as the defense secretary's central role in shaping the war plan, rejecting the initial plan and pressing for a campaign that would be quicker, using fewer forces.
Both Mr. Rumsfeld and General Myers denied that the number of ground forces had been trimmed below levels requested by General Franks.
At his forward command post in Qatar, General Franks backed up the Pentagon's view today. "We're in fact on plan," he said during a news briefing. "I did not request additional troops before the beginning."
Calling Troop Levels Adequate, Rumsfeld Defends War Planning - March 30, 2003
WASHINGTON, July 9, 2003 - Gen. Tommy R. Franks said today that violence and uncertainty in Iraq made it unlikely that troop levels would be reduced "for the foreseeable future," and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld nearly doubled the estimated military costs there to $3.9 billion a month.
"We have about 145,000 troops in there right now," General Franks told the Senate Armed Services Committee. He said he had talked to "commanders at every level inside Iraq," and found that the size and structure of those forces were appropriate for the current situation."
Laverne, thanks for the Franks update.