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Donald Rumsfeld Quotes


Many people around the President have sizeable egos before entering government, some with good reason. Their new positions will do little to moderate their egos.

Members of the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate are not there by accident. Each managed to get there for some reason. Learn what it was and you will know something important about them, about our country and about the American people.

Oh my goodness gracious, what you can buy off the Internet in terms of overhead photography. A trained ape can know an awful lot of what is going on in this world, just by punching on his mouse, for a relatively modest cost.

One of your tasks is to separate the "personal" from the "substantive." The two can become confused, especially if someone rubs the President wrong.

Our task, your task... is to try to connect the dots before something happens. People say, 'Well, where's the smoking gun?' Well, we don't want to see a smoking gun from a weapon of mass destruction.

Plan backwards as well as forward. Set objectives and trace back to see how to achieve them. You may find that no path can get you there. Plan forward to see where your steps will take you, which may not be clear or intuitive.

Politics is human beings; it's addition rather than subtraction.

Preserve the President's options. He may need them.

Presidential leadership needn't always cost money. Look for low- and no-cost options. They can be surprisingly effective.

Prune - prune businesses, products, activities, people. Do it annually.

Public servants are paid to serve the American people. Do it well.

Reduce the layers of management. They put distance between the top of an organization and the customers.

Reduce the number of lawyers. They are like beavers - they get in the middle of the stream and dam it up.

Remember where you came from.

Secretary Powell and I agree on every single issue that has ever been before this administration except for those instances where Colin's still learning.

See that the President, the Cabinet and staff are informed. If cut out of the information flow, their decisions may be poor, not made, or not confidently or persuasively implemented.

Test ideas in the marketplace. You learn from hearing a range of perspectives. Consultation helps engender the support decisions need to be successfully implemented.

The Federal Government should be the last resort, not the first. Ask if a potential program is truly a federal responsibility or whether it can better be handled privately, by voluntary organizations, or by local or state governments.

The price of being close to the President is delivering bad news. You fail him if you don't tell him the truth. Others won't do it.

The Secretary of Defense is not a super General or Admiral. His task is to exercise civilian control over the Department for the Commander-in-Chief and the country.