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Education Quote by Donald Rumsfeld

"Secretary Powell and I agree on every single issue that has ever been before this administration except for those instances where Colin's still learning"

About this Quote

Rumsfeld’s line is a master class in Washington knife-work dressed up as collegial banter. On its face, it’s the kind of breezy unity message an administration wants on camera: the defense secretary and the secretary of state, shoulder to shoulder. Then comes the swivel: “except for those instances where Colin’s still learning.” The joke lands because it pretends to praise Powell while quietly re-ranking him as a junior member of the team, a student in need of instruction rather than a peer with an independent mandate.

The specific intent is twofold: project discipline (“we agree on every issue”) while preemptively discrediting dissent. If Powell diverges on policy, Rumsfeld has already framed that divergence as inexperience or misunderstanding, not a legitimate alternative. It’s a rhetorical trap: Powell can’t disagree without seeming to confirm the punchline.

The subtext also reflects the early-2000s balance-of-power drama inside the Bush administration, where Powell’s more cautious, diplomatic instincts often ran up against the Pentagon’s hard-edged confidence. Rumsfeld’s phrasing carries that bureaucratic swagger: the Defense Department as the grown-up table, State as the annex that needs to catch up. It’s not just a personal jab; it’s a turf claim.

What makes it work is its performative lightness. Delivered as a quip, it offers plausible deniability. If challenged, it’s “just humor.” But the power move is real: define the hierarchy, define the narrative, and turn disagreement into a teachable moment.

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TopicWitty One-Liners
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APA Style (7th ed.)
Rumsfeld, Donald. (2026, January 15). Secretary Powell and I agree on every single issue that has ever been before this administration except for those instances where Colin's still learning. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/secretary-powell-and-i-agree-on-every-single-141096/

Chicago Style
Rumsfeld, Donald. "Secretary Powell and I agree on every single issue that has ever been before this administration except for those instances where Colin's still learning." FixQuotes. January 15, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/secretary-powell-and-i-agree-on-every-single-141096/.

MLA Style (9th ed.)
"Secretary Powell and I agree on every single issue that has ever been before this administration except for those instances where Colin's still learning." FixQuotes, 15 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/secretary-powell-and-i-agree-on-every-single-141096/. Accessed 5 Feb. 2026.

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Donald Rumsfeld

Donald Rumsfeld (July 9, 1932 - June 29, 2021) was a Politician from USA.

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