Book Quote by John Dickerson

'Duty' is a refreshingly honest memoir and a moving one. Mr. Gates scrupulously identifies his flaws and mistakes: He waited too long, for example,…

— Jack Keane

Only four secretaries of defense served longer than Robert M. Gates. Many others were as dedicated; many sacrificed a great deal. Alone among them…

— Jack Keane

Bob Gates understands the difficulty of going to war. This is a man who spent almost his entire life working for the government.

— William M. Daley

“Gates should have exceeded Washington as a military leader. He had long experience in a professional army and was more loved by his men.…

— John Ferling

“For those of you who were critical that nobody paid enough attention to the generals at the beginning of the war, has it occurred…

— Bob Woodward

[General James Mattis] a very talented individual. He's - has a personal library of about 10,000 books and he's read most of them on…

— Peter R. Mansoor

Don Rumsfeld is the finest secretary of defense the nation has ever had.

— Dick Cheney

The Secretary of Defense is not a super General or Admiral. His task is to exercise civilian control over the Department for the Commander-in-Chief…

— Donald Rumsfeld

As a former secretary of defense, I think Donald Rumsfeld is the best secretary of defense the United States has ever had.

— Dick Cheney

My background was fairly conservative, and I think there's a strong notion of duty in a background like that, and I don't think that's…

— Damian Lewis

I thought Colin Powell did a fine job as secretary of state.

— George W. Bush

“military figures like James Mattis, H. R. McMaster, and John Kelly: they found themselves working in an administration that was in every way inimical…

— Michael Wolff