Building up to the invasion of Iraq, “By mid-February [2003] there was a U.S. force of 140,000 in the region, with plans for only 78,000 for the ground attack–not as many as [Lieutenant General David] McKiernan and his planners wanted, but the number they were able to squeeze out of [Secretary of Defense Donald] Rumsfeld, who was determined to prove his point that wars could be won with a minimal but lethal force.” [The 15th of the month used for date sorting purposes only.]
– Elisabeth Bumiller, Condoleezza Rice: An American Life, Page 203