The topic was the largest defense procurement scandal in recent decades, and the two investigators for the Pentagon's inspector general in Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld's office on April 1, 2005, asked the secretary to raise his hand and swear to tell the truth.
Rumsfeld agreed but complained. "I find it strange," he said to the investigators, on the grounds that as a government official "the laws apply to me" anyway.
It was a bumpy start to an odd interview, as Rumsfeld cited poor memory, loose office procedures, and a general distraction with "the wars" in Iraq and Afghanistan to explain why he was unsure how his department came to nearly squander $30 billion leasing several hundred new tanker aircraft that its own experts had decided were not needed.
It is strange that Rumsfeld would tell the truth, anytime, anywhere. & it's not strange that the Inspector General at the time, Joseph E. Schmitz, decided not to publish that section of the interview & then resign & become an employee of a defense contractor. I wonder if he had any, oh, I don't know, conflicts of monied interests?
No comments:
Post a Comment