A biography for Donald Rumsfeldhasn’t been written yet.
“Be precise. A lack of precision is dangerous when the margin of error is small.”
“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.”
“If you foul up, tell the President and correct it fast. Delay only compounds mistakes.”
“I can't tell you if the use of force in Iraq today will last five days, five weeks or five months, but it won't last any longer than that.”
“Simply because you do not have evidence that something exists does not mean that you have evidence that it doesn't exist.”
“Reduce the layers of management. They put distance between the top of an organization and the customers.”
“With the press there is no 'off the record.'”
“When you raise issues with the President, try to come away with both that decision and also a precedent. Pose issues so as to evoke broader policy guidance. This can help to answer a range of similar issues likely to arise later.”
“Congress, the press, and the bureaucracy too often focus on how much money or effort is spent, rather than whether the money or effort actually achieves the announced goal.”
“Amidst all the clutter, beyond all the obstacles, aside from all the static, are the goals set. Put your head down, do the best job possible, let the flak pass, and work towards those goals.”
“Don't be a bottleneck. If a matter is not a decision for the President or you, delegate it. Force responsibility down and out. Find problem areas, add structure and delegate. The pressure is to do the reverse. Resist it.”
“In our system leadership is by consent, not command. To lead a President must persuade. Personal contacts and experiences help shape his thinking. They can be critical to his persuasiveness and thus to his leadership.”
“Don't think of yourself as indispensable or infallible. As Charles De Gaulle said, the cemeteries of the world are full of indispensable men.”
“תשאף להציע פתרונות שהם בגדר מימוש עצמי בלבד. ככל שדרגת הריסון עולה, כך גם ביורוקרטיה, עיכוב ותוצאות.”
“דיווחים האומרים שמשהו לא התרחש תמיד מעוררים בי עניין.... ישנם הדברים שאנחנו יודעים שאנחנו יודעים. אנחנו גם יודעים שיש דברים לא ידועים. כלומר, אנחנו יודעים שיש מספר דברים שאותם איננו יודעים. אבל, יש גם דברים בלתי ידועים, שאותם איננו יודעים שאיננו יודעים. ואם מישהו מביט בהיסטוריה של מדינתנו ומדינות חופשיות אחרות הקטגוריה האחרונה נוטה להיות הקשה יותר.”
“ממה שאני יודע, אני שקט. אבל אני חייב להניח שיש גם דברים שאיני יודע. ומה שאני לא יודע, זה מה שמדאיג אותי.”
“Leave the President's family business to him. You will have plenty to do without trying to manage the First Family. They are likely to do fine without your help.”
“Reduce the number of lawyers. They are like beavers - they get in the middle of the stream and dam it up.”
“Reports that say that something hasn't happened are always interesting to me, because as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns- the ones we don't know we don't know.”
“If you develop rules, never have more than ten.”