He told a Department of Defense meeting last year: "As we know, there are known knowns.There are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns. That is to say,we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns - the ones we don't know we don't know."

Questioned about the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden during the war in Afghanistan, he replied: "We do know of certain knowledge that he is either in Afghanistan, or in some other country, or dead."

Asked whether the United States would go to war without Great Britain, Rumsfeld responded: "Their situation is distinctive to their country and they have a government that deals with a parliament in their way, distinctive way, and what will ultimately be decided is unclear as to their role, um, that is to say their role in the event a decision is made to use force . . ."

Consider also his statement to the New York Times: "Once in a while, I'm standing here, doing something. And I think `What in the world am I doing here?' It's a big surprise."

He told one reporter: "If I know the answer I'll tell you the answer, and if I don't, I'll just respond, cleverly."

Other Rumsfeldisms include: 

 "I think what you'll find, I think what you'll find is, whatever it is we do substantively, there will be near-perfect clarity as to what it is."

"And it will be known, and it will be known to the Congress, and it will be known to you, probably before we decide it, but it will be known." 

 "I would not say that the future is necessarily less predictable than the past - I think the past was not predictable when it started." 

"I also know that stating what might be preferable, er, is simply stating what might be preferable." 

"Near my office is an American flag done in . . . origami . . . that's one of those words that I haven't mastered yet." 

"Well, um, something's neither good nor bad but thinking makes it so, I suppose - as Shakespeare said." 

"I believe what I said yesterday . . . I don't know what I said, er, but I know what I think, and . . . well, I assume it's what I said."