Donald Rumsfeld's Quotes

Remember where you came from.

The price of being close to the President is delivering bad news. You fail him if you don't tell him the truth. Others won't do it.

The way to do well is to do well.

With the press there is no 'off the record.'

Work continuously to trim the White House staff from your first day to your last. All the pressures are to the contrary.

You're thinking of Eurpoe as Germany and France. I don't. I think that's old Europe.

Plan backwards as well as forward. Set objectives and trace back to see how to achieve them. You may find that no path can get you there. Plan forward to see where your steps will take you, which may not be clear or intuitive.

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.

Don't be a bottleneck. If a matter is not a decision for the President or you, delegate it. Force responsibility down and out. Find problem areas, add structure and delegate. The pressure is to do the reverse. Resist it.

Look for what's missing. Many advisors can tell a President how to improve what's proposed or what's gone amiss. Few are able to see what isn't there.

Members of the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate are not there by accident. Each managed to get there for some reason. Learn what it was and you will know something important about them, about our country and about the American people.

The Federal Government should be the last resort, not the first. Ask if a potential program is truly a federal responsibility or whether it can better be handled privately, by voluntary organizations, or by local or state governments.

Congress, the press, and the bureaucracy too often focus on how much money or effort is spent, rather than whether the money or effort actually achieves the announced goal.

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.

Many people around the President have sizeable egos before entering government, some with good reason. Their new positions will do little to moderate their egos.

Our task, your task... is to try to connect the dots before something happens. People say, 'Well, where's the smoking gun?' Well, we don't want to see a smoking gun from a weapon of mass destruction.

Secretary Powell and I agree on every single issue that has ever been before this administration except for those instances where Colin's still learning.

See that the President, the Cabinet and staff are informed. If cut out of the information flow, their decisions may be poor, not made, or not confidently or persuasively implemented.

Test ideas in the marketplace. You learn from hearing a range of perspectives. Consultation helps engender the support decisions need to be successfully implemented.

The Secretary of Defense is not a super General or Admiral. His task is to exercise civilian control over the Department for the Commander-in-Chief and the country.

Visit with your predecessors from previous Administrations. They know the ropes and can help you see around some corners. Try to make original mistakes, rather than needlessly repeating theirs.

When you raise issues with the President, try to come away with both that decision and also a precedent. Pose issues so as to evoke broader policy guidance. This can help to answer a range of similar issues likely to arise later.

There are known knowns. These are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say, there are things that we know we don't know. But there are also unknown unknowns. There are things we don't know we don't know.

If you try to please everybody, somebody's not going to like it.

There are a lot of people who lie and get away with it, and that's just a fact.

You will launch many projects, but have time to finish only a few. So think, plan, develop, launch and tap good people to be responsible. Give them authority and hold them accountable. Trying to do too much yourself creates a bottleneck.

Enjoy your time in public service. It may well be one of the most interesting and challenging times of your life.

Don't speak ill of your predecessors or successors. You didn't walk in their shoes.

Oh my goodness gracious, what you can buy off the Internet in terms of overhead photography. A trained ape can know an awful lot of what is going on in this world, just by punching on his mouse, for a relatively modest cost.

Treat each federal dollar as if it was hard earned; it was - by a taxpayer.

Death has a tendency to encourage a depressing view of war.

It isn't making mistakes that's critical; it's correcting them and getting on with the principal task.

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

Don't divide the world into 'them' and 'us.' Avoid infatuation with or resentment of the press, the Congress, rivals, or opponents. Accept them as facts. They have their jobs and you have yours.

If you are not criticized, you may not be doing much.

Don't blame the boss. He has enough problems.

Arguments of convenience lack integrity and inevitably trip you up.

Be yourself. Follow your instincts. Success depends, at least in part, on the ability to 'carry it off.'

Be precise. A lack of precision is dangerous when the margin of error is small.

I don't do quagmires.

If in doubt, don't. If still in doubt, do what's right.

I can't tell you if the use of force in Iraq today will last five days, five weeks or five months, but it won't last any longer than that.

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

Don't think of yourself as indispensable or infallible. As Charles De Gaulle said, the cemeteries of the world are full of indispensable men.

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.

Don't say 'the White House wants.' Buildings can't want.

Silences make the real conversations between friends. Not the saying but the never needing to say is what counts.

Learning is always rebellion... Every bit of new truth discovered is revolutionary to what was believed before.

Happiness is not a state to arrive at, but a manner of traveling.

There is no power on earth more formidable than the truth.