Smash hit

He said that the lack of adequate troop levels was among a series of mistakes that helped to create the Abu Ghraib abuse scandal by giving too much responsibility to incompetent or undertrained troops. Many serving officers, he said, felt the same way.

Praised in 2004 by Mr Rumsfeld's former deputy, Paul Wolfowitz, for his "tact, diplomacy and coolness," General Batiste told CNN: "It speaks volumes that guys like me are speaking out from retirement about the leadership climate in the Department of Defence."

Although there have been regular calls for Mr Rumsfeld’s resignation in the past three years, the conviction that he made strategic errors by insisting on invading Iraq "on the cheap" has taken root in the past month as public confidence in President Bush's handling of the war has sunk to new lows.

There has even been "friendly fire" from within the administration. Condoleezza Rice, the Secretary of State, acknowledged on a recent visit to Britain that the US had made "tactical errors, thousands of them", in Iraq.

Mr Rumsfeld later retorted that errors were inevitable in war. "If someone says, well, that’s a tactical mistake, then I guess it’s a lack of understanding of what warfare is about."

But at a Pentagon press conference, General Peter Pace, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, leapt to the defence of Mr Rumsfeld, saying that the country was "exceptionally well served" by him.

"People can question my judgment or his judgment but they should never question the dedication, the patriotism and the work ethic of Secretary Rumsfeld."

President Bush has so far vigorously defended him, not least because he is reluctant to hand Mr Rumsfeld’s head to critics of a war for which he bears at least as much responsibility. Mr Rumsfeld has reportedly offered to resign twice in the past, and been refused.

"The president believes Secretary Rumsfeld is doing a very fine job during a challenging period," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said yesterday.

The Defence Secretary himself has sneeringly dismissed the criticism, telling the press conference that there were "hundreds and hundreds and hundreds" of ex-US generals "and there are several who have opinions... that’s not surprising".

Daniel Goure, a vice-president of the Lexington Institute, a think-tank, said that an "old boy network" of former generals appeared to be "taking advantage of the Republicans’ weakened state to up-end the Rumsfeld transformation" of the military, which many had always resented.

He suggested that some appeared to be "dodging the bullet" by refusing to recognise their mistakes, while failing to recognise that a greater concentration of troops in Iraq would not have been possible given the constraints on the US military. Dr Goure said: "I don’t think he will go before he has finished the job in changing the Army. He looks pretty good for somebody who is being beaten around the head — I think he thrives on it."

IN HIS OWN WORDS

On the location of WMDs: "We know where they are. They’re in the area around Tikrit and Baghdad and east, west, south, and north somewhat"

March 30, 2003
"The absence of evidence is not evidence of absence"

June 2002
"I can’t tell you if the use of force in Iraq will last five days, five weeks or five months, but it won’t last any longer than that"

November 2002
"I don’t do quagmires"

July 2003
On disorder in Iraq: "Stuff happens"

April 2003
More on disorder in Iraq: "It’s untidy, and freedom’s untidy. Free people are free to make mistakes and commit crimes and do bad things. They’re also free to live their lives and do wonderful things"

April 2003
On his unwillingness to talk about coalition dead: "Death has a tendency to encourage a depressing view of war"

May 2003
"If you are not criticized, you may not be doing much."
One of ‘Rumsfeld’s Rules’

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