So, Rummy says there was no cover-up in the death of Pat Tillman.
He is the same guy who said there were WMD by the barges-full in Iraq, He knew where they were; "North, South, East and slightly west of Baghdad," or some such stupidity.
"We know where they are," said Rummy. That was just a few says before he opined that "shit happens in a Democracy," as Baghdad was looted, except for the Oil Ministry, of course.
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Wednesday there was no evidence of a cover-up of the circumstances of Army Ranger Cpl. Pat Tillman's death.
Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld appears Wednesday before a hearing on Pat Tillman's death.
"I know that I would not engage in a cover-up. I know that no one in the White House suggested such a thing to me," Rumsfeld testified before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which is examining what senior Defense Department officials knew about Tillman's April 2004 death by friendly fire and when they knew it.
Tillman's parents, brother and widow attended the hearing.
Rumsfeld said he was sure Tillman's family felt "great sorrow at their son's death" and "the handling of the circumstances could only have added to the pain of losing a loved one. I offer ... my deep regrets."
Rumsfeld testified that he didn't recall precisely when he learned of Tillman's death. "It could have been internally or it could have been through the press," he said.
"The only action I can recall taking was to draft a letter to the family," he added.
He said he didn't remember when he first heard of the possibility that Tillman's death was the result of fratricide.
Rumsfeld said he did not recall discussing the case with the White House until it had become public knowledge that Tillman was killed by friendly fire.
He said he did not instruct his staff to try to influence news coverage of Tillman's death.
Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland, asked Rumsfeld how he could not have known that Tillman was killed by American troops.
"You're talking about an institution of something like 3 million people -- active duty, reserve, guard, civilians, contractors," Rumsfeld said. "There are so many things going on in that department in any given year. ... It's like a city of 3 million people. It's not possible for someone to know all the things that are going on."
Rumsfeld was joined by Gen. Richard Myers, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Gen. John Abizaid, former chief of U.S. Central Command; and Gen. Bryan Douglas Brown, former commander of U.S. Special Operations Command. All of the generals are now retired.
Lt. Gen. Philip Kensinger, whom the secretary of the Army censured Tuesday for his handling of the military's investigation into Tillman's death, was invited to testify, but Rep. Henry Waxman, chairman of the committee, said the general had refused to appear and had been subpoenaed but couldn't be located.
Kensinger's attorney said he was away on business.
"He declined the committee invitation to testify two weeks ago, so it was no surprise to the committee that he had no intent to participate in a hearing that is all about show and no substance," attorney Charles W. Gittins said in an e-mail to the AP.
Army Secretary Pete Geren also ordered a grade-review board to consider whether Kensinger should be stripped of a star.
On Tuesday, Geren found the retired three-star general "guilty of deception" after reviewing recommendations from the Pentagon's inspector general and Gen. William Wallace, a four-star general who investigated the death and its aftermath. 
Watch Geren apologize for how the Army handled Tillman's case »
"When you look at all of the events that led to where we are today ... and you look at what Gen. Kensinger's role was, had he performed his duty, we wouldn't be standing here today," Geren said.
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Tillman -- who turned down a contract offer from the NFL Arizona Cardinals to join the military after the September 11, 2001, attacks -- was killed by members of his platoon in Afghanistan on April 22, 2004. For five weeks, his family was not told that the death was a result of fratricide, or friendly fire.
Kensinger failed to notify Tillman's family in a timely manner of the friendly-fire investigation, failed to notify then-Acting Secretary of the Army Les Brownlee of the probe and failed to convene a safety board to investigate the incident, Geren said.
And then, when an investigation and the Army's handling of it began seven months later, Kensinger "provided false official statements in order to protect himself from criticism," he said.
"Gen. Kensinger was the captain of that ship, and his ship ran aground," Geren said. "It ran aground because he failed to do his duty, and the results were calamity for the Army."
Gen. Kensinger is not the Captain of any ship, he's Army, fer Chrssake!
The secretary said the grade-review panel, made up of four-star generals, would recommend whether to bump Kensinger down to major general. Their recommendation, however, is nonbinding; Defense Secretary Robert Gates will make the final decision.
The investigation also raised questions about whether the citation for Tillman's Silver Star was in order, but Geren said he found nothing questionable in that. In 2007 a review board affirmed the awarding of the posthumous decoration to Tillman but corrected the citation to reflect the facts accurately.
Last March, Defense Department Inspector General Thomas Gimble faulted nine Army officers -- including Kensinger -- for making critical errors in reporting Tillman's death.
Geren said the failure to notify the family of the friendly-fire investigation was one of "an incredible number of mistakes" the Army made in handling the situation, ultimately "destroying our credibility" in the eyes of the Tillmans, who have publicly disputed the Army's investigations.
"I can understand, considering how the Army mishandled this matter from very early on, how they would reach the conclusion that I'm afraid many Americans have reached, that there was a cover-up," Geren said. "But the facts don't support that conclusion." E-mail to a friend 
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The Nazis, Fascists and Communists were political parties before they became enemies of liberty and mass murderers.
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