Defense Watch: Rumsfeld Passes; Stealth Drone Plan; Hold on Kendall

摘要

Rumsfeld. Donald Rumsfeld, former secretary of defense under both Gerald Ford and George W. Bush, died on June 29 at the age of 88. Rumsfeld oversaw the start of the U.S.’ involvement in both Afghanistan and Iraq, and was a key figure in putting forth the debunked theory that the Iraqi government was harboring weapons of mass destruction. Rumsfeld’s tenure during his second stint at the helm of the Pentagon was condemned by groups such as the Human Rights Watch for the department’s allowance of torture tactics on detainees, or what the administration called at the time “enhanced interrogation techniques.” Rumsfeld also faced scrutiny for the department’s slow actions to address troops’ requests for more armor in the face of growing IED threats. “As you know, you go to war with the Army you have, not the Army you might want or wish to have at a later time. You can have all the armor in the world on a tank, and a tank can be blown up. And you can have an up-armored Humvee, and it can be blown up,” he said in 2004.