Donald Rumsfeld
U.S. Secretary of Defense
National Press Club Luncheon Speaker -- Sept. 10, 2003

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Donald Rumsfeld was sworn in as the 21st secretary of defense on Jan. 20, 2001. Prior to assuming the post, Rumsfeld also served as the 13th secretary of defense, White House chief of staff, U.S. ambassador to NATO, U.S. congressman and chief executive officer of two Fortune 500 companies.

As defense secretary, Rumsfeld is responsible for the formulation of general defense policy and is the principal defense policy adviser to the president. He directed the Defense Department after the Sept. 11 attacks and the war in Iraq, and helped to develop a new defense strategy centered on strengthening ties with key allies and fighting terrorism. Under Rumsfeld's leadership, the Defense Department has created a new concept of strategic deterrence that increases security while reducing strategic nuclear weapons.

Born in Chicago, Rumsfeld is a 1954 graduate of Princeton University and served in various capacities within the U.S. Navy beginning in 1954. Rumsfeld was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1962 and served almost four terms before resigning in 1969 to direct the Office of Economic Opportunity in the Nixon administration. In 1973, he left Washington, D.C., to serve as U.S. Ambassador to NATO in Brussels, Belgium. Rumsfeld became White House chief of staff from 1974 to 1975 under President Ford. From 1975 to 1977, Rumsfeld served in the Ford administration as the youngest secretary of defense in American history.

Rumsfeld has headed two Fortune 500 companies including Searle & Co., a worldwide pharmaceutical company, and General Instrument Corporation. He also served as Chairman of the Board of Gilead Sciences, Inc., a pharmaceutical company, and spent some years in private business.

In 1977, Mr. Rumsfeld was awarded the nation's highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.



In Depth:

• Beyond the War in Iraq

• Aug. 19, 2003: Rumsfeld Rebuffs Criticism on Postwar Iraq

• March 27, 2003: Rumsfeld Defends Iraq War Plan



Related Links:

• The Department of Defense

• The Pentagon

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