Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Saturday Morning News
Donald Rumsfeld Speaks Out About War in Iraq
Aired October 11, 2003 - 08:05 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CHARLES MOLINEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Now to the Bush administration's media blitz over U.S. operations in Iraq. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is the latest one to speak out.
White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux joins us now live from our Washington bureau -- Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning.
The White House is fully engaged in its public relations campaign to try to convince Americans that it was worth it to go to war. President Bush today, in his weekly radio address, is going to be making his case, this following a week of nearly identical speeches by the president, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, the vice president, and then, most notably and most recently, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
Just yesterday in Simi Valley, California, at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, making the case, trying to explain why the increase in U.S. casualties. He called it serious fighting. He also called it low intensity. But he said that one of the unexpected problems was really the strength of Saddam loyalists to instill fear in the Iraqi people.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I suppose on reflection, the thing that probably surprised me the most is the ability that the so-called Fedayeen Saddam people had to terrorize and frighten the rest of the Iraqi people and cause them to not come over to the other side.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Now, Charles, this is really part of an aggressive strategy to counter some of the criticism, that criticism being that no weapons of mass destruction have been found, nearly 100 U.S. soldiers have been killed since President Bush declared major combat over, the fact that the U.N. Security Council is wary of signing onto another resolution to support Iraqi reconstruction and, finally, polls showing that nearly half of Americans believe that it was not worth it to go to war -- Charles.
MOLINEAUX: Thank you.
Suzanne Malveaux live in Washington.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired October 11, 2003 - 08:05 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CHARLES MOLINEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Now to the Bush administration's media blitz over U.S. operations in Iraq. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is the latest one to speak out.
White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux joins us now live from our Washington bureau -- Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning.
The White House is fully engaged in its public relations campaign to try to convince Americans that it was worth it to go to war. President Bush today, in his weekly radio address, is going to be making his case, this following a week of nearly identical speeches by the president, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, the vice president, and then, most notably and most recently, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
Just yesterday in Simi Valley, California, at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, making the case, trying to explain why the increase in U.S. casualties. He called it serious fighting. He also called it low intensity. But he said that one of the unexpected problems was really the strength of Saddam loyalists to instill fear in the Iraqi people.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I suppose on reflection, the thing that probably surprised me the most is the ability that the so-called Fedayeen Saddam people had to terrorize and frighten the rest of the Iraqi people and cause them to not come over to the other side.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Now, Charles, this is really part of an aggressive strategy to counter some of the criticism, that criticism being that no weapons of mass destruction have been found, nearly 100 U.S. soldiers have been killed since President Bush declared major combat over, the fact that the U.N. Security Council is wary of signing onto another resolution to support Iraqi reconstruction and, finally, polls showing that nearly half of Americans believe that it was not worth it to go to war -- Charles.
MOLINEAUX: Thank you.
Suzanne Malveaux live in Washington.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
