Donald Henry Rumsfeld

Donald Rumsfeld was an American politician, government official and businessman who served as Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under president Gerald Ford, and again from 2001 to 2006 under President George W. Bush. He was both the youngest and the oldest secretary of defense. He also served as a four-term U.S. Congressman from Illinois, director of the Office of Economic Opportunity, counselor to the president, the U.S. Representative to NATO, and the White House Chief of Staff. Between his terms as secretary of defense, he served as the CEO and chairman of several companies, including G. D. Searle & Company, General Instrument, and Gilead Sciences. He chaired the Commission to Assess the Ballistic Missile Threat to the United States, which advocated for a national missile defense system. As Secretary of Defense, Rumsfeld played a central role in the 2001 United States invasion of Afghanistan and 2003 invasion of Iraq. He was a controversial figure for his handling of the Iraq War, his claims about weapons of mass destruction, and his involvement in the Abu Ghraib torture scandal. He resigned from his post in 2006 amid growing criticism and public disapproval. After leaving office, he wrote several books, including his memoir Known and Unknown, and established the Rumsfeld Foundation to support leadership and public service. He died of multiple myeloma at his home in Taos, New Mexico, on June 29, 2021, at the age of 88.