Just a heads-up that Wilkerson will be on the News Hour with Jim Lehrer tonight.
And catch this excertpt fram a press conference with Rumsfeld regarding Wilkerson's claims of a 'cabal':
Q Mr. Secretary, recently Larry Wilkerson, the former State Department official, has described what he said was a cabal between you and Vice President Cheney in forming public policy leading up to the war. And he described what he said was a seriously dysfunctional foreign policy. I don't think we've heard you speak on that. Can you just respond to that?
SEC. RUMSFELD: I haven't read this. I've heard about it. And I don't know the man. I've never met the man, and I don't believe he's ever been in a meeting of the NSC. So it's hard for me to understand exactly what his insights might have been.
But, obviously, the president is the one who makes foreign policy, and the secretary of State is the one that implements foreign policy. And it's the country's policy.
I don't know what else one could say.
Q If I can just follow up. He seems to be complaining that the State Department's role in that was minimized in the lead-up to the war.
SEC. RUMSFELD: My experience in those meetings is that the president is the principal person who decides these things, and if he -- what was his job, this fellow?
Q He was -- forgive me, I cover the Pentagon, but he was the chief of staff to Powell.
Q He was chief of staff to Powell.
SEC. RUMSFELD: I don't know what his perspective was or what his expectations were.
Q Do you think he was speaking for Secretary Powell?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Oh my goodness. Secretary Powell is perfectly capable of speaking for himself. I can't imagine --
Q You didn't interpret it that way?
SEC. RUMSFELD: I didn't.
Q So there was no cabal?
SEC. RUMSFELD: Of course not. My goodness gracious. The president of the United States makes these decisions, and he did it in open meetings and discussions that went on, and at great length. And that kind of a perspective obviously is looking through the wrong end of a telescope, I think.
Classic Rumsfeld. (assshooole!!!) Excuse me I had to sneeze.
I'm sure Wilkerson will respond to Rumsfeld's remarks and extend his critique of national security decisionmaking process in the White House on the News Hour tonight.