Secretary of Defensiveness

The news conference held by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld yesterday was a surreal event. I kept wondering, “Will he ever pull his head out of his you-know-what and give a straight answer to a straight question?”

They should rename his position the Secretary of Defensiveness. Like a pissy little schoolboy, Rummy bristled at the pointed questions hurled at him by the press. His responses rarely went beyond tweaking, noodling, bobbing and spinning. And often, he flat-out refused to answer. Not because they were bad questions, but because any answer would have made him and the Bush team look bad.

When challenged on the deplorable and deteriorating situation in Iraq, he finally replied, “Honorable people are working on these things together”. As if that should give us comfort.

Rummy doesn’t grasp that most of the nation now regards him as dishonorable. With good reason, Americans have reached the sad conclusion that he and his team are evasive, untrustworthy and incompetent.

Rummy recently tried to "take responsibility" for the situation in Iraq, but his statements amounted to, Yes, I’m in charge of the war apparatus and take responsibility for being in charge, but refuse to acknowledge that horrific blunders and miscalculations were made. Whatever minor problems have occurred are the fault of rogue individuals, not me.

So much for President Bush’s promise to restore accountability to government.

Ever the Cheerleader, Rummy insisted that we will win in Iraq, whatever that now means. “The way to get there is in steps.” But he won’t say what new steps we are taking. Instead, we seem to be staying the course even though the administration has outlawed that phrase. Rather than adjust military and political strategy, Republicans merely want to adjust the language we use to talk about it.

But the most tragic aspect of Rumsfeld’s demeanor remains his unwillingness to answer tough questions with honesty and a seriousness befitting the gravity of the situation. He’ll joke, evade and get mad, but he won’t say or do anything to acknowledge that his team has really screwed things up, that likely hundreds of thousands of people have died as a result, and that Americans have good and right reason to be angry and upset.

Instead, Rummy just keeps bumbling on.

______________________


For a fascinating reminder of the horrors of war, the sacrifices made and the damage done by government lies and dishonesty, see the new movie “Flags Of Our Fathers,” directed by Clint Eastwood from the book by the same name.

It’s a deep, dark homage to our nation’s soldiers, telling three tales at once: The story of the battle of Iwo Jima including the infamous flag-raising atop Mount Suribachi, the story of the men who raised the infamous flag, and the story of the son of one of those men as he attempts to learn more about his father’s heroic past.

The film features amazing imagery, a beautiful score (by Eastwood!) and several extraordinary performances, especially the Ira Hayes character played brilliantly by Adam Beach. The best war movie since Saving Private Ryan.

- JT Compton