'Full spectrum dominance': Donald Rumsfeld, the Department of Defense, and US irregular warfare strategy 2001-2008

This article examines the evolution of US irregular warfare (IW) doctrine and practice from 2001 onwards. It argues that, after 9/11, top-tier civilian policymakers in the US Department of Defense (DoD) and across the US government developed a heightened awareness of asymmetric threats and non-conventional forms of warfare, especially those shaped by contemporary globalisation. The result was a gradual turn towards irregular warfare, led by Rumsfeld and the DoD, designed to ensure ‘full spectrum dominance’ across all modes of conflict. This pre-dated the insurgency in Iraq and the promotion of counterinsurgency in the US Army by General David Petraeus and others. Policymakers' reluctance to acknowledge the insurgency in Iraq was not down to a failure to understand the concept of IW, but because they had viewed Iraq in conventional terms for so many years and were reluctant to admit their mistake

Senate Floor Statement

Senate Floor statements by Donald Rumsfeld, Trent Lott, and John Warner on Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) and the Defense Authorization Bill

Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer

Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer featuring Donald Rumsfeld. Topic discussed: defense spending; Ballistic Missile Defense Plan; and terrorism in the Middle East. Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer interview of Senator Trent Lott. Topics discussed: social security trust fund surplus; capital gains tax cut; trade promotion authority; and payroll tax reduction