Rumsfeld Defends Civilians

Given the drubbing Donald Rumsfeld has been taking lately at the hands of some retired generals, it should come as no surprise that he loves Defense Department civilian employees. At least that's what David S.C. Chu, the Pentagon's top personnel official, says, according to the Defense Department's official news service. Controversial DoD personnel reforms, including implementing a pay-for-performance system, are simply part of Rumsfeld's plan to "restore the civil service to its rightful place as an equal partner with the military," DoD reported. "Too often in recent years managers have avoided using a federal civil service solution because the system has been too cumbersome," Chu told attendees at a workforce conference in Falls Church, Va.