Posted on 02/24/2005 10:24:42 AM PST by Former Military Chick
Hunter statement on Secretary Rumsfeld's recent appearance at the House Armed Services Committee and the inaccurate Washington Post coverage that followed
Washington, D.C. - House Armed Services Committee Chairman Duncan Hunter (R-CA) made the following statement regarding Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's testimony on February 16th - and an erroneous Washington Post front page commentary the following day. A letter to the editor of the Post was submitted on the 17th but has not yet been published. In an effort to set the record straight in a timely manner, the letter is being released today.
"The February 17 front-page Washington Post Capitol Hill Journal piece, 'Secretary on the Offensive' was incorrect.
"Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld hadn't 'had enough' when he left my committee's hearing. We had agreed in advance that the hearing would terminate after three hours because the secretary had another hearing commitment. Therefore, the article's suggestion that he got mad and left did a disservice to the truth and to the secretary. Further, Secretary Rumsfeld graciously invited the handful of members in line to ask questions to a private breakfast in the Pentagon in the next few weeks. Hardly the actions of someone discourteous.
"As for his style, the secretary answers questions forthrightly. Sometimes the correct and honest answer is 'I don't know.' Dana Milbank's focus on 10 seconds of exchanges left out the remaining three hours of Secretary Rumsfeld's expansive remarks on numerous complex topics.
"Secretary Rumsfeld is responsible for a war in two theaters, reshaping the 2.5 million defense force of the United States and preparing the nation to meet present and future security threats. His success should be judged on his professional competence, not innuendo. In my judgment, he has done an outstanding job."
I LOVE how the Repubs are finally hitting back at specific false stories. Maybe they're getting a little inspiration from the bloggers.
Great letter! Keep them honest.
http://www.neoperspectives.com/rumsfeld.htm
The Best of U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld
For Rummy fans
"Secretary Rumsfeld is responsible for a war in two theaters, reshaping the 2.5 million defense force of the United States and preparing the nation to meet present and future security threats. His success should be judged on his professional competence, not innuendo. In my judgment, he has done an outstanding job."
Well said! Well said!
Thank you for posting this---I wondered what the hub-bub was all about.
I am glad that Rep. Hunter took the time and effort to respond the first time to the Post, but more importantly, I am glad he didn't let the Post ignore it without being called on it!!!!!
When is the MSM gonna learn that THEY are being scrutinized now, like they have done to the politicians all of these years?
ping
Let's see: has anybody kept a count of how many times the WP has been "wrong" in the last month?
Yes. Rummy went out of fashion with the repubs around the time he went out of fashion with the MSM. Getting back to that "we want people to think we're nice" silliness is DEADLY. Fight! Wimps like Harry Reid can't stand up to someone who fights back.
The Truth Will Out!
Big Rumsfeld ~ Bump!
Hmmm. Maybe Dana Milbank should be answering questions about the chairman's criticism on the WAPO email system? Anyone have a link?
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