Thanks. I knew both Bush’s haven’t and won’t support Trump, I was just wondering how they threw Rummy under the bus.
Oversimplified, but in a nutshell: when the Iraq war idea started fizzling, Bush made Rummy the fall guy.
The Iraq war has never been understood by the American people, in part due to Bush’s high-handed failure of leadership. It’s still controversial for most Americans, hence Holt’s bizarre hammering on it at the debate.
Rumsfeld and Bush do not think alike. Bush does not have a “genius” for foreign affairs (which after all is rare). Rumsfeld is more aligned with Trump’s views. They think in a strategic and far-sighted way. Important premise for them: the global order is important, but there cannot be global order without both American strength and leadership.
A few brilliant people fit into this same philosophical camp: Trump, Rumsfeld, Cheney, Kissinger, Reagan, Kirkpatrick, Shultz. Yes, they vary in foci, but in foreign affairs, they are not politicians and not administrators - they are Statesmen. They operate from a vision, not from a panicked crisis-management mode. They are painted by popular msm culture as power-mad authoritarians. They are the very people that should be studied as national heroes.