Elbow resting on lectern and finger wagging at questioners, Donald Rumsfeld is the most ubiquitous face of the Bush ad­ministration. Should George W. Bush, US president, belatedly accept Mr Rumsfeld's resignation, which was twice offered in 2004, supporters say it would jeopardise his own credibility more than three years after ordering the invasion of Iraq.

Unfortunately that is a step Mr Bush is still unprepared to take. In response to the growing chorus of retired generals calling for the defence secretary's scalp, Mr Bush last Friday praised Mr Rumsfeld's leadership as "exactly what we need at this critical moment".