Rumsfeld resigned before election, letter shows

[johnnie]

" WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Donald Rumsfeld, architect of the unpopular Iraq war, resigned as defense secretary before last year's November election but his decision was not announced until after the voting, according to his resignation letter obtained by Reuters on Wednesday.

The letter was dated November 6, the day before voters, angered by Iraq, went to the polls and swept President George W. Bush's Republicans from power in Congress. According to a stamp on the letter, Bush saw it on election day.

The president, however, did not announce that Rumsfeld would leave until the day after the election."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070815/pl_nm/usa_rumsfeld_resignation_dc_2;_ylt=ApTGjdO9iTnmrUiQ_3j2DKYE1vAI

Why would he have done that?

[Kagemusha]

1. Didn't think Bush made his reasoning secret at the time.

He felt it would've sent a message of weakness at a critical juncture. One can view that in different lights: perhaps deep down, Bush preferred to lose Congress rather than retain it on the basis that an unpopular defense secretary resigned, therefore leaving Bush with a Republican congress buoyed by a message of opposition to the Iraq war. If that was Bush's sense of the matter, history has vindicated him: the Democrats have done nothing to end the war and have fully funded it, pressed hard by a fiercely united Republican minority in Congress, led and supported by an unrepentant President who has managed to create enough of a show of changing his strategy - to the surge - to cow reluctant supporters on the Republican side into submission.

[malaise]

5. Rubbish

Bushco doesn't want to concede that the Dems ran Rumsfeld.

[Virginia Dare]

2. There was a post about Rummy not looking well recently..

he had to be supported in walking. I wonder if a serious health issue came up?

[xultar]

3. lyin and torturing is hard on a prickasaurus

[johnnie]

4. I don't wish bad will on anyone really

But I'll sleep fine tonight.