The memorandum begins by stating, "U.S. senior military leaders are involved to an unprecedented degree in every decision-making process in the Department of Defense." It says Mr. Rumsfeld has had 139 meetings with the Joint Chiefs of Staff since the start of 2005 and 208 meetings with the senior field commanders.
Seeking to put the criticism of the relatively small number of retired generals into context, the e-mail message also notes that there are more than 8,000 active-duty and retired general officers alive today.I'd like to know where they got the number of 8,000 generals. They make it sound like being a general is common. I don't buy it.
snip:
It is not uncommon for the Pentagon to send such memorandums to this group of officers, whom they consider to be influential in shaping public opinion. But it is unusual for the Pentagon to issue guidance that can be used by retired generals to rebut the arguments of other retired generals.snip:
One retired general who regularly attends the Pentagon meetings said Saturday that he found it unusual for the Pentagon to send such a memorandum in the middle of a heated debate, because it was almost certain to appear politically motivated.
"I think it's part of the charm offensive," said the general, who was granted anonymity because he said he was afraid he would not be invited to future Pentagon sessions.Three republicans, who preferred to remain anonymous, said that Rumsfeld's resignation could help in November. Cornyn says if Rummy's forced to quit then it would encourage demands for members of the cabinet or people close to bush to resign, too.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/16/washington/16rumsfeld.html?hp&ex=1145246400&en=80490becc6fc560d&ei=5094&partner=homepageon edit: I would really love to debunk this 8,000 general claim. Can anyone find out? Google's giving me hell.
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