Relations between Gen. Eric Shinseki, the Army Chief of Staff, and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld were never that friendly--and got worse last spring, when Shinseki testified before Congress that occupying Iraq would require "several hundred thousand troops." (Who's Who).Relations between Gen. Eric Shinseki Eric Ken Shinseki (born November 28, 1942) is a retired General in the United States Army and served as the 34th Chief of Staff of the United States Army (1999 - 2003). He is the first Asian American in U.S. , the Army Chief of Staff, and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld were never that friendly--and got worse last spring, when Shinseki testified before Congress that occupying Iraq would require "several hundred thousand troops." Shinseki's estimate, based on a study by the Army War College, was shot down by Rumsfeld deputy Paul Wolfowitz Paul Dundes Wolfowitz (born December 22, 1943) is a visiting scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, working on issues of international economic development, Africa and public-private partnerships. , who disparaged it publicly as "wildly off the mark." The feud continued through Shinseki's retirement ceremony on June 11, which neither Rumsfeld nor Wolfowitz, breaking protocol, deigned to attend. But Shinseki did not go quietly. His valedictory took several veiled shots at the secretary, criticizing those who "suggest that we, in the Army, don't understand the importance of civilian control of the military The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please [ improve this article] or discuss the issue on the talk page. " and warning, "Beware the 12 division strategy for a 10 division Army"--a reference to Rumsfeld's plans to downsize Downsize Reducing the size of a company by eliminating workers and/or divisions within the company. Notes: When a company downsizes, it is attempting to find ways to improve efficiency and increase profitability. It is sometimes referred to as trimming the fat. that branch of the armed forces. |
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