Robert McNamara

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Would Rummy Pull a McNamara and Apologize?

Not anytime soon, says his biographer

(Newser) - Robert McNamara, the architect of the Vietnam War, eventually expressed regret for the conflict—but would Donald Rumsfeld ever apologize for Iraq? Unlikely—at least not anytime soon, writes a Rumsfeld biographer in the Washington Post. Thus far, the former secretary of Defense “has never appeared to waver in...

McNamara, Palin Share Lousy Exit Strategies

(Newser) - The governor of Alaska and the architect of the Vietnam War both make fine examples of how not to quit a government post, David Broder writes in the Washington Post. Robert McNamara waited 28 years to explain that he stepped down as defense secretary because of his grave doubts about...

Obama Shares McNamara's Fatal Flaw
 Obama Shares 
 McNamara's Fatal Flaw 
OPINION

Obama Shares McNamara's Fatal Flaw

(Newser) - For some the death of Robert McNamara was the last chapter of a bygone disaster, but as George Will writes, Barack Obama and his team have more in common with the architect of Vietnam than they realize. McNamara's "eerie assuredness pervades the Washington in which he died," writes...

Rot in Hell, Mr. McNamara
 Rot in Hell, Mr. McNamara 
Non-Appreciation

Rot in Hell, Mr. McNamara

(Newser) - At long last, Robert Strange McNamara has “shuffled off to join LBJ and Dick Nixon in the 7th level of hell,” writes journalist and author Joseph Galloway, who couldn’t be more pleased. “McNamara was the original bean-counter—a man who knew the cost of everything but...

'Whiz Kid' McNamara Could Not Escape Vietnam
'Whiz Kid' McNamara Could Not Escape Vietnam
legacy

'Whiz Kid' McNamara Could Not Escape Vietnam

(Newser) - Robert McNamara led many careers but will be best remembered for his time as secretary of defense during the Vietnam War. Though he privately disagreed with some decisions, he maintained a public optimism about “McNamara’s War” that earned him derision, Reuters reports. Describing the impact of the war...

Vietnam Architect Robert McNamara Dead at 93

Kennedy appointee held post during Vietnam war

(Newser) - Robert S. McNamara, who presided over the escalation of the Vietnam War as Defense secretary under presidents Kennedy and Johnson, died at his home this morning after a period of failing health, his wife told the AP. He was 93. Known as a policymaker with a fixation for statistical analysis,...

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