"And he could have said 'That's out of context' instead of fumbling. He's used to public speaking."

Clint, he was ambushed. I went through a period of about 3 years during which I spoke publicly some 200 times. I wouldn't have been able to refute an out of context quote from something I said 18 months before without the text of the statement in front of me. Heck, I remember being ambushed this way over some work I had done while I was on the stand in at a State regulatory hearing. I knew what they said happened wasn't true, but it wasn't until 30 minutes after I got off the stand that I was able to sort through my memory so I could explain what I had done. I'm sure I looked like a deer in the headlights for a minute or two, the hot seat's no fun. I realize Rummy is infinitely more professional at this than I ever was, but I'm sympathetic.

"'No terrorist state poses a greater or more immediate threat to the security of our people and the stability of the world and the regime of Saddam Hussein in Iraq.' pretty well nails him."

I can't agree, though I'll freely admit it's a matter of interpretation. The speech is clearly laid out in the "some people say" rhetorical form and he's responding to that. Rumsfeld quotes "some people" saying North Korea, etc. are a "more imminent threat" than Iraq without agreeing with them on explicitly on the "more" and implicitly on the "imminent threat" part. My reading is that even to the extent you think the threat from those countries is imminent, he'd still consider Iraq more of a threat for the reasons he states.

IMO, as I say, but I believe the way to see the statement, particularly given the greater context of the Administration's repeated assertions that Iraq could not be allowed to become a threat.