How much effort should be expended on not catching terrorists?

Just how does the US explain US Special Forces in a foreign country in a shootout anyway? Just asking.

Yep no doubt about it. Rumsfeld is the best secretary of defense in US history.

Mr. Cheney’s declaration that “Don Rumsfeld is the finest secretary of defense the nation has ever had,” was more in keeping with the tone of the event.

Of course he only made a few stupendously stupid decisions such as this one.

U.S. Special Forces teams sent overseas on secret spying missions have clashed with the CIA and carried out operations in countries that are staunch U.S. allies, prompting a new effort by the agency and the Pentagon to tighten the rules for military units engaged in espionage, according to senior U.S. intelligence and military officials.

The spy missions are part of a highly classified program that officials say has better positioned the United States to track terrorist networks and capture or kill enemy operatives in regions such as the Horn of Africa, where weak governments are unable to respond to emerging threats.

But the initiative has also led to several embarrassing incidents for the United States, including a shootout in Paraguay and the exposure of a sensitive intelligence operation in East Africa, according to current and former officials familiar with the matter. And to date, the Special Forces espionage effort has not led to the capture of a significant terrorism suspect.

...

The program was approved in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks by Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, and is expected to get close scrutiny by his successor, Robert M. Gates, who takes over Monday and has been critical of the expansion of the military's intelligence operations.

Gawd I'm glad to see Rummy gone.

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