Donald Rumsfeld

If in doubt, move decisions up to the President.

Think ahead. Don’t let day-to-day operations drive out planning.

Public servants are paid to serve the American people. Do it well.

Don’t necessarily avoid sharp edges. Occasionally they are necessary to leadership.

Leave the President’s family business to him. You will have plenty to do without trying to manage the First Family. They are likely to do fine without your help.

With the press there is no ‘off the record’.

I prefer to be in the grave in Colombia than in a jail cell in the United States.

Our soldiers are there (in Syria) in order to secure Russia’s interests in this critically important part of the world, which is so near to us. And they will stay there, for as long as it is in Russia’s interest for them to do so.

There are all sorts of filtering devices to get rid of people who are a pain in the neck and think independently. Those of you who have been through college know that the educational system is very highly geared to rewarding conformity and obedience.

The threat from Saddam Hussein and weapons of mass destruction – chemical, biological, potentially nuclear weapons capability – that threat is real.

No one’s asked me. If somebody felt there was a job I could actually do I would consider it — not out of any ambition to be in Washington, but I do want to rise to the occasion of serving there if warranted.

It’s not radical Islam that worries the US – it’s independence

We get the leaders we vote for. We get the policies we vote for. And when we don’t vote, that’s when we wind up with government of, by and for other people.

Israel ranks her priorities in the following way: security, land, and water.

I stand for anti-bigotry, anti-Semitism, and anti-racism.

No matter how hard the loss, defeat might serve as well as victory to shape the soul and let the glory out.

Can you imagine what the outcry would be if Snoop Dogg, failing career and all, had aimed and fired the gun at President Obama? Jail time!

Eventually we’re going to get something done and it’s going to be really, really good.

Clever and attractive women do not want to vote; they are willing to let men govern as long as they govern men.

I have a very positive attitude to anyone who is protecting the environment, but it’s inadmissible when people are using it as a means of promoting themselves, using it as a source of self-enrichment. I don’t want to name any specific examples… but often, environmentalism is used to blackmail companies.

We need to use the United Nations Security Council and believe that preserving law and order in today’s complex and turbulent world is one of the few ways to keep international relations from sliding into chaos. The law is still the law, and we must follow it whether we like it or not.