With the press there is no ‘off the record.’
DONALD RUMSFELDPreserve the President’s options. He may need them.
More Donald Rumsfeld Quotes
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If you are not criticized, you may not be doing much.
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You go to war with the army you have, not the army you might want or wish to have at a later time.
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Amidst all the clutter, beyond all the obstacles, aside from all the static, are the goals set. Put your head down, do the best job possible, let the flak pass, and work towards those goals.
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Whatever your position, reach out to those who know more than you do, and have been around longer than you have. Find those people. Listen carefully. And learn.
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Be precise. A lack of precision is dangerous when the margin of error is small.
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First rule of politics: you can’t win unless you’re on the ballot. Second rule: If you run, you may lose. And, if you tie, you do not win.
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If the staff lacks policy guidance against which to test decisions, their decisions will be random.
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Your performance depends on your people. Select the best, train them and back them. When errors occur, give sharper guidance. If errors persist or if the fit feels wrong, help them move on. The country cannot afford amateur hour in the White House.
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There are no “knowns.” There are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say there are things that we now know we don’t know. But there are also unknown unknowns. There are things we do not know we don’t know.
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Everyone’s saying you can’t do anything until you can do everything.
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Know that the amount of criticism you receive may correlate somewhat to the amount of publicity you receive.
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Death has a tendency to encourage a depressing view of war.
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Treat each federal dollar as if it was hard earned; it was – by a taxpayer.
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If you develop rules, never have more than ten.
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Presidential leadership needn’t always cost money. Look for low- and no-cost options. They can be surprisingly effective.
DONALD RUMSFELD