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The following is part of a chilling DoD News Briefing - Secretary Rumsfeld and Gen. Myers April 25 The many press "laughter" responses recorded in the transcript is quite appalling. http://defenselink.mil/transcripts/2003/tr20030425-secdef0126.html [ .............. ] Q: Mr. Secretary, in that -- going back to the case of the juveniles in Guantanamo, why isn't there a formal legal process for adjudicating those cases, as well as the other -- the cases of the other people who are contained there? General Myers said that these juveniles have killed people, but there hasn't been a trial, there hasn't been a tribunal, there hasn't been a hearing. (Pause.) Rumsfeld: I mean, I'll answer. The president announced a policy. It has been tested and looked at legally, and we are proceeding on that basis -- that the people gathered in Guantanamo we would prefer not to hold. We would like to have arrangements with other countries that they would take their nationals on a basis where we could get future access to them, in the event additional intelligence comes up, and where we have reason to have confidence that they would not simply release people that are a danger to the lives of American men, women and children. Now we're keeping them down there to keep them off the street. These -- this is a worldwide network that -- the al Qaeda is, and these folks and the Taliban were part of that and were fighting in Afghanistan and killing people. We have them in Guantanamo, they're being examined and interrogated by an interagency process. The president has several ways he can proceed. He can put them into an Article 3, United States Article 3, our Constitution, court; he can establish a military commission and try them that way; or he can keep them for the duration of the war and keep them off the street so they don't kill other people. Now, everything that is being done is being done legally and properly. And this constant refrain of "the juveniles," as though there's a hundred of children in there -- these are not children. Dick Myers responded to that. There are plenty of people who have been killed by people who were still in their teens. Q: But there's no -- they're being held indefinitely. There's no process for handling -- Rumsfeld: I just explained the process. Q: Well -- I mean -- Q: Mr. Secretary, you said a few minutes ago that you're disinclined to bring Iraqis to Guantanamo. Can you tell us why is it that Guantanamo was a good place to have brought Taliban and al Qaeda, but not to bring Iraqis? Rumsfeld: The people we brought were people who were part of a worldwide -- for the most part, a worldwide terrorist organization, or were participating with the al Qaeda. The people we've got in Iraq are, in large measure, Iraqi people who belong in Iraq. And to the extent they have to be held for some period of time, it's a lot more convenient to hold them in Iraqi prisons than it is to build prisons in Guantanamo and transport them down there. So it just seems to me, first of all, it's respectful of the taxpayers' dollars. Why should we build a whole lot more prisons in Guantanamo and then pay to transport these folks down there? Q: General Myers, can you clear up something that you said about -- last -- earlier in the week about the cluster bombs? There was an incident in which a young girl, apparently -- there was some kind of munition. Have you any clarity on that? Myers: Yeah, I do. The information that I had at the time indicated, the first report, that it -- that this little girl had actually intended to harm U.S. soldiers. In fact, I think, as we went back, it was as was stated, I think, by somebody in the back of the room, that she was trying to return -- and it wasn't a cluster bomb, but it was return some sort of munition, and it went off. Q: Was that the one incident that you referenced earlier when you talked about the cluster bombs? Myers: No. Q: Do you know about that incident? Myers: Not -- well, I don't know what it is, frankly. I know there's one that they're investigating. It will take them about 30 days to figure out the details of that. Q: Mr. Secretary, can you give us details on -- (Off mike.)? And can you elaborate in any way on his significance, because of the reports that he apparently may have met at some point in the past with Osama bin Laden, the significance as far as establishing Iraqi times to terrorist groups? Rumsfeld: (To General Myers.) Do you remember which one he is? (Laughter.) Q: The former intelligence official, sir. Rumsfeld: We've got a variety of former intelligence officials. Q: The one that -- (Off mike.). Rumsfeld: One had the American portfolio and one had been an intelligence officer and later an ambassador to another country. Q: That one. Q: That's the one. Rumsfeld: That one? Yeah. Q: Allegedly involved in the alleged plot against -- Rumsfeld: And what was your question about him? Q: Could you give us more details on his apprehension and elaborate on his significance as -- Rumsfeld: I'd rather not. He is significant. We think he could be interesting. But I'd rather not give you -- Myers: He should know a lot of history that would be -- and a lot of details. Q: Can you talk about the number of U.S. ground forces in Iraq now? And do you expect that -- Rumsfeld: I can: 135,000 forces, eliminating the word "ground." Q: Well, as far as the ground forces, do you expect that number to stay roughly the same in the coming weeks? Rumsfeld: It's less than 135(,000). Q: Rise? Or fall? And there are some who are coming back from the region, including Arizona Congressman Jim Kolbe, who are saying you don't have enough ground forces there to keep the peace. Rumsfeld: (Pause.) How does one do this? (Laughter.) Myers: Carefully. Rumsfeld: Carefully, he said. Yes. Graciously. General Franks is the combatant commander in that area of responsibility. He has done an excellent job. He has told us what he believes is the appropriate force level in that country. We have a total of U.S. forces of plus or minus 135,000 at this moment, which is probably as high as it's ever been. And there are some of those people who are not ground forces, they're pilots. They're air crews, and some are doing other things, administrative things. So the number of actual ground forces, to use your phrase, is, I would guess, something less -- maybe even less than 100,000. I just don't know the number. We don't divide them up that way; do you? Myers: No, sir. We also have coalition forces. Rumsfeld: And we've got 23,000 coalition forces, plus or minus, at the present time on top of that. And we have, fortunately, a lot of countries stepping forward with additional coalition forces. Q: Any sense of how many? Rumsfeld: Well, we'll announce them as they move in the country. They're being -- Q: With ground forces, do you expect that number to be down in the coming weeks, stay about the same, rise -- Rumsfeld: Here we go again. Why can't reporters report on what's happening instead of what might happen if all these variables happen to occur? We can't know how serious -- the security problem might flare up at some point. We can't know precisely the pace at which General Garner and his folks are going to be able to get local Iraqis to begin to assume some of those security activities. We can't tell you precisely how many additional countries are going to be sending in forces and what day they'll arrive. Over time, do we want to see the number of U.S. forces decline? You bet. Are we perfectly willing to put in any number of U.S. forces that are necessary to provide the kind of security in that country so that they can get on their way to humanitarian assistance and reconstruction and an interim authority? You bet we do. And we will. We'll put in what we need to. And we happen to have the number that General Franks thinks we need. And that number will vary up or down, depending on coalition forces coming in, depending on the security situation. And it's all going along pretty well, I'd say. Q: Mr. Secretary, YOU asked the question -- Rumsfeld: I think we'd probably better call a halt to this. Q: Well, YOU asked the question, though. Can I answer the question you asked? (Laughter.) Rumsfeld: What do you do with someone like that?! Q: You said why do reporters -- why don't they just report on what's happening -- Rumsfeld: I guess I did say that. Did I say that? It was off the record. (Laughter.) Q: And the answer is, because you have plans about what you're going to do in the future, and you're disinclined to share them with us. So we have to ask them -- Rumsfeld: No, I'm inclined to -- I just shared them with you. I do have plans, and I just told you the plan! The plan is to increase the number of U.S. forces, if they're necessary, and to decrease them if they're not necessary, to get as many other countries participating -- coalition forces -- in there as I possibly can, and to the extent I can, have fewer U.S. forces, and to the extent I can't -- cannot, have more U.S. force. That is the plan! Q: (Off mike.) -- Rumsfeld: I know that leaves people somewhat unfulfilled, but it happens to be truth. That's ground truth. That's how we do these things. That's what we do. That's our job. Q: (Off mike.) -- sir. Rumsfeld: Yeah. (Cross talk.) Q: General Myers, on the cluster bomb issue, can I -- Rumsfeld: Whoa, whoa, whoa! Q: What -- Rumsfeld: Whoa, whoa, whoa! Q: On the cluster bomb issue, though -- Rumsfeld: What did you say? Say it again. Hold it. Isn't that what you said? Q: (Laughs.) Q: Hold it. Hold everything. Hold on. (Laughter, Cross talk.) Q: If you decide to take a trip, keep your head down, will you? Copyright ©2003 by Federal News Service, Inc., Ste. 220, 1919 M St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20036 USA. Federal News Service is a private firm not affiliated with the federal government. No portion of this transcript may be copied, sold or retransmitted without the written authority of Federal News Service Inc. Copyright is not claimed as to any part of the original work prepared by a U.S. government officer or employee as a part of that person's official duties. _______________________________________________ Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. 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