If Rumsfeld isn't SecDef at the start of George W's first term

At least Coats would've been willing to listen to the generals and authorize more troops for the Iraq mission if they said "We need this number, not just to win the war, but to maintain the peace afterwards."
 
Why does everyone assume that a SecDef can magically receive a greater commitment on the ground in a given theater of conflict?
 
The Rule came about do to an effort to have George C Marshal named as the Secretary of defense. He was shot down and became Secretary of State instead.
 
Dare I suggest Colin Powell?

I do not remember when Colin Powell left the military, but law prohibits an ex member of the U.S. miiitary from serving as Secretary of Defense within so many years of his leaving the service. Unless you get a congressional waiver.

Sorry, did not see the above posts.

It should be noted though that Rumsfeld was one of the greatest political enemies of President Bush's father. President George H.W. Bush, and repeatedly manuevered in the 1970s to ruin his political career.
 
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