Accountability necessary for renewed foreign policy, Rumsfeld must go

Montpelier, Vt. - Today, Senate President Pro Tem Peter Welch, candidate for U.S. Congress, said he would support a resolution in Congress calling on Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to resign or be fired.

"As Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld has been the face of failed policies in Iraq. America needs to get its foreign policy back on track and the essential first step is changing leadership at the top. Rumsfeld must go," said Welch.

Last week, the Administration requested another $115 billion for Iraq and Afghanistan - nearly $400 billion since the fighting started - yet the Administration fails to demonstrate accountability for its numerous failures or offer a concrete plan for achieving peace.

"Rumsfeld's leadership has been characterized by bad judgment, arrogance, and a refusal to listen," added Welch. "It is time for Congress to set a new course and new direction."

In the lead up to war:

• Rumsfeld ignored criticism offered by the intelligence community, preferring instead to rely on "give me the answer I want" intelligence to achieve predetermined conclusions;
• Rumsfeld and the Bush Administration misled the American people about a connection between 9/11 and Iraq and that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction;
• Rumsfeld brushed aside cautionary advice from our nation's most trusted world allies, preferring to forge ahead with a near go-it-alone approach to the war and diplomacy.

In the prosecution of the war:

• Rumsfeld rejected out-of-hand the sober advice of respected military leaders about the troop strength required for successfully winning the peace;
• Rumsfeld failed to anticipate the insurgency, painting instead the false picture that our troops would be greeted as liberators;
• Rumsfeld failed to assure our troops had sufficient armor and equipment, resulting in preventable causalities;
• Rumsfeld allowed for the mistreatment of detainees at the Abu Graib prison and fails to address the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo.

A senior general at the Pentagon told the Washington Post that the Office of the Secretary of Defense "refused to listen or adhere to military advice" [CBS/AP 5.9.04]. In addition, Rumsfeld and the Pentagon ignored former Army chief of staff Gen. Eric K. Shinseki's advice that the U.S. needed more troops to be successful.

"We owe our military commanders and troops far more respect than Secretary Rumsfeld has given them. Rumsfeld recklessly disregarded the advice of senior military commanders and experts, and has failed to execute or even articulate a plan for the war's end," said Welch.

As a result of Rumsfeld's failures, even Republican leaders Sen. John McCain and Sen. Chuck Hagel have both said they have "no confidence" in Rumsfeld [AP, 12.14.04 and CBS Face the Nation, 12.19.04]. Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf has also criticized Rumsfeld as arrogant and out of touch with the troops [MSNBC, 12.15.04].

"I call on Rumsfeld's resignation because his poor judgment has unnecessarily put Vermonters and Americans at risk and has undermined our ability to accomplish our goals," said Welch. "Americans should not forget that Rumsfeld has failed to eliminate the single greatest threat to our security, to find Osama bin Laden and dismantle his terror network."

"We have yet to get a plan for peace from this President or a demand for one from this Congress. New leadership is overdue so we can transfer responsibility for Iraq's future to the Iraqis and refocus on the critical task of improving our homeland security and effectively fighting the global war on terror," concluded Welch.

February 24, 2006