Donald Rumsfeld Quotes
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With the press there is no 'off the record.'
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If the staff lacks policy guidance against which to test decisions, their decisions will be random.
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If a prospective Presidential approach can't be explained clearly enough to be understood well, it probably hasn't been thought through well enough. If not well understood by the American people, it probably won't 'sail' anyway. Send it back for further thought.
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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.
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It recalls to mind the statement by Winston Churchill, something to the effect that: I have benefited greatly from criticism, and at no time have I suffered a lack thereof. 15
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Don't speak ill of your predecessors or successors. You didn't walk in their shoes.
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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.
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Presidential leadership needn't always cost money. Look for low- and no-cost options. They can be surprisingly effective.
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Enjoy your time in public service. It may well be one of the most interesting and challenging times of your life.
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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.
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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.
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Preserve the President's options. He may need them.
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Look at me! I'm sweet and lovable!
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Be precise. A lack of precision is dangerous when the margin of error is small.
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Don't automatically obey Presidential directives if you disagree or if you suspect he hasn't considered key aspects of the issue.
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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.
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After he saw what happened to Saddam Hussein, he (Gaddafi) did not want to be Saddam Hussein. He gave up his nuclear program.
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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.
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Stuff happens.
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Prune - prune businesses, products, activities, people. Do it annually.
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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.
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Oh, Lord. I didn't mean to say anything quotable.
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And there is, I am certain, among the Iraqi people a respect for the care and the precision that went into the bombing campaign.
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If you develop rules, never have more than ten.