Woodward's book critical of Rumsfeld

NEW YORK — Bob Woodward's much-anticipated new book paints a devastating picture of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld as an arrogant, indecisive bumbler who won't take responsibility for his mistakes — or even admit any.

The book, "State of Denial," says the Bush administration is hiding the truth about the worsening violence in Iraq. Rosy official forecasts are belied by secret intelligence predicting a strengthening insurgency and increasing daily attacks next year.

A bleak accounting of mistakes and missteps before and after the Iraq invasion, the book lays much of the blame at Rumsfeld's feet.

It reveals that former White House Chief of Staff Andy Card tried hard to get President Bush to boot Rumsfeld — but was pushed out himself.

"I think he's done a fine job," Bush said of Rumsfeld.

The book says Card was bitter that he had to leave when "the man most responsible for the postwar trouble, the one who should have gone, was staying."

Rumsfeld also clashed with then-national security adviser Condoleezza Rice, whose calls he sometimes wouldn't return when she wanted to know about war planning or troop deployments. Rumsfeld told her she was not in the chain of command.

Woodward recounts in scathing tones two July interviews with Rumsfeld in which the author was left "speechless" by the defense secretary's blithe refusal to admit grim truths or take any responsibility for the carnage.

Rumsfeld rejected the notion that he might bear any direct responsibility for mistakes that cost lives, suggesting he was "two or three steps removed."

"How could he not see his role and responsibility? I could think of nothing more to say," Woodward writes.

At one point Rumsfeld dismissed a question about the rapidly rising number of monthly insurgent attacks by saying the reporting of incidents was merely improving.

And he affected not to know much about a May 24 intelligence report from the Joint Chiefs saying the violence would get much worse in 2007.

"When was this? Gosh, I don't know," Rumsfeld told Woodward. "I read so many of those intelligence reports and they are all over the lot."

Longtime Defense Department consultant Stephen Herbits blasted Rumsfeld's "counterproductive" leadership in a 2004 memo, calling him arrogant and "indecisive, contrary to popular image." He is suspicious, cautious and avoids leaving his fingerprints on major decisions, Herbits wrote.