Speaking of Rumsfeld, he seems to be losing Republican friends quickly. Last week, it was John McCain.
The Arizona Republican, who has frequently been critical of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, said Sunday that he respects President Bush’s decision to keep Rumsfeld in his post. But McCain declined to give the decision an endorsement.
“I respect the president,” McCain said. “The president of the United States was re-elected by a majority of the American people, and I respect his right. And I will work with the president obviously and with the secretary of defense.”
Asked if such comments were a vote of confidence, McCain responded, “No, it’s not.”
Yesterday, it was Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.).
BLITZER: Let me interrupt you, Senator Hagel, because it sounds to me like you’re expressing a vote of no confidence in the defense secretary.
HAGEL: Well, the secretary of defense reports to the president of the United States. I’ve had my differences with this secretary of defense, and I have been very clear on it.
I don’t like the way he has done some things. I think they have been irresponsible. I don’t like the way we went into Iraq. We didn’t go into Iraq with enough troops. He’s dismissed his general officers. He’s dismissed all outside influence. He’s dismissed outside counsel and advice. And he’s dismissed a lot of inside counsel and advice from men and women who have been in military uniforms for 25 and 30 years.
One of the reasons we’ve got this problem, Wolf, in my opinion, is that we were unprepared for what we were going to face, what we are facing, in a post-Saddam Iraq. And this is just one more manifestation of the problem.
[…]
BLITZER: But very briefly to you, Senator Hagel, were you disappointed that the president asked Rumsfeld to stay on?
HAGEL: The president’s decision is his decision. He will live with that decision. He’ll have to defend that decision. And that’s all I want to say about it.
With this in mind, wouldn’t now be a good time for congressional Dems to start being assertive again in calling for Rumsfeld’s resignation? If this keeps up, there’d be bipartisan support for the change.