Donald Rumsfeld can seem peculiarly friendless. Calling for the American defence secretary's resignation is a popular sport for everyone from retired generals to political pundits. Almost the only person who seems to retain complete confidence in Mr Rumsfeld is his boss, President George W. Bush.

But Mr Rumsfeld's beleaguered position has not made him any the less pugnacious. In a speech on August 29, he attacked critics of the American war effort in Iraq for "moral and intellectual confusion", lambasted the media for spreading "myths and distortions" about the US military and argued that the west faces a "new type of fascism" in the Middle East.