Nov. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, unable to fulfill U.S. goals in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan during his tenure, will resign from President George W. Bush's Cabinet, a senior administration official said.
Rumsfeld, 74, oversaw the global fight against terrorism that followed the Sept. 11 attacks. A casualty of the American public's growing conviction that U.S. policy in Iraq is a dismal failure, Rumsfeld's stewardship of the war is likely to be his foremost legacy.
In yesterday's congressional elections, Democrats took over the House and are within one seat of controlling the Senate in part because of public dissatisfaction with the course of the war in Iraq.
A brusque and energetic management style, zeal to transform the military and unwillingness to admit mistakes made Rumsfeld one of Bush's most controversial Cabinet members. Criticism began soon after Rumsfeld's appointment in early 2001, much of it stemming from his fight to streamline the Army and Marines and reorganize the Pentagon.
His decision to shift focus and troops to Iraq from Afghanistan is increasingly drawing criticism as Taliban insurgents and their al-Qaeda regain strength in the Central Asian nation.
Bush previously has defended the defense secretary and said he wanted him to stay in the job.
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