[T]he critics were right to speak out "because the alternative was to let it go and not say anything. . . . Particularly when you are in a war and people are losing their lives, you need to speak out and say what needs to be said," Shalikashvili said in an interview Friday.
Shalikashvili fell short of calling for Rumsfeld's resignation since he wasn't close enough to any of the Iraq War planning to make that call. He did say, however, there were "a number of significant mistakes" made, for which Rumsfeld is ultimately responsible.