Don of a new era

It's a classic scene from what might be called "The World According to Don Rumsfeld." On a raw November day in Bratislava, the US Defense secretary strides onto a red carpet, places his hand over his heart, and listens to a military rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner." It's the type of ritual that Mr. Rumsfeld, impatient by his own account, usually only tolerates.

But this day is special - "thrilling" he says. Slovakia, a former part of the communist axis, has been invited to join NATO - and Rumsfeld, long a cold-war warrior, relishes the triumph. "Here we are!" he beams as he steps into the lights of television cameras. "[The world] has changed."

Rumsfeld recalls his Chicago childhood with Czechoslovakian immigrants, his impassioned "Captive Nations" speeches in Congress in the 1960s, and his vigil as NATO ambassador for President Nixon in the early 1970s.

Now, Slovakia stands as proof that "freedom is ascendant, and the cause of liberty has prevailed over the darkness of tyranny and terror and will do so again," he says later.

The obscure incident illustrates one of Rumsfeld's overarching beliefs: A strong America leads aggressively in the right direction, and the world invariably comes around. It's less unilateralism than an "America-knows-best" brand of paternalism. American might and right proved decisive in winning the cold war. It will win the war on terrorism. It worked in Afghanistan. It will work with Iraq.

Today, with the United States again poised on the brink of war, Rumsfeld's leadership style and core beliefs are shaping the use of American force at a pivotal point in modern history. In coming weeks, he will counsel President Bush on the use of preemptive military action to overthrow the Iraqi regime - with repercussions that could either transform or destabilize the Middle East.

Those decisions will flow from a complex man known to be both dedicated and, at times, domineering.

Friends, classmates, employers, and colleagues say Rumsfeld possesses an unusual mix of traits. He is solidly conservative but not strident, principled but pragmatic, old-fashioned yet forward-looking. Sober about the world's dangers, he is optimistic about tackling them.

His blunt convictions have won him praise, yet critics call him an abrasive, arrogant warmonger. Rumsfeld often voices exasperation that his views are distorted or misunderstood. Regardless, the hard-charging Midwesterner is a force to contend with in American politics.

"He has a lot of influence," says former President Ford, who first appointed Rumsfeld Defense secretary in 1975.

At the heart of Rumsfeld's worldview is the moral imperative of American leadership, which he embraced, along with his own duty of public service, half a century ago. As a clean-cut student on scholarship at Princeton in the 1950s, Rumsfeld was so inspired by former Illinois Gov. Adlai Stevenson's address at the March 1954, senior-class banquet that he has handed out copies for years.

"The world's fate now hangs upon how well or how ill we in America conduct our affairs," Mr. Stevenson said. "If America stumbles, the world falls."

Eight years later, in 1962, Rumsfeld repeated this conviction from train platforms along Chicago's North Shore, handing out pamphlets in an upstart congressional candidacy that would launch his political career. "Maintain a firm, no-back-down foreign policy based on the rightness of our position, and backed by our military strength," read his debut statement, featuring a fresh-faced 29-year-old Rumsfeld under the words "From Where I Stand."

Now a feisty 70, Rumsfeld stresses that America must lead a struggle against terrorism and weapons of mass destruction, confident that other nations will follow.

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