The recent appointment of former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld as a distinguished visiting fellow to Stanford's Hoover Institution, a conservative-leaning think tank, struck a political nerve among students and faculty on Stanford's campus.
A Sept. 7 announcement from Stanford declared that Rumsfeld will be joining the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, a research center whose mission is to "recall the voice of experience against the making of war" and to "recall man's endeavors to make and preserve peace," according to the institution's Web site.
As the man in charge of the nation's defense during the response to the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, Rumsfeld's appointment has generated backlash from students and faculty alike.
According to a Sept. 18 article by The Stanford Daily, angry members of the Stanford community are demonstrating political activism against the former defense secretary with "talk of a mock trial for war crimes, calls for a resolution in the Faculty Senate condemning the appointment and an online petition with 1,305 signatures."
English Professor Robert Polhemus responded to the appointment by sending a mass e-mail entitled, "Ten reasons why the appointment of Donald Rumsfeld to the Hoover Institution at Stanford as a Senior Fellow is sad, ridiculous and contemptible." The e-mail gained more than 40 responses overnight, according to the article.
One of Polhemus' main objections concerns the focus of the task force - terrorism and ideology - to which Rumsfeld was appointed. Polhemus wrote in his e-mail, "Experts from all perspectives are pretty well united in agreeing that Rumsfeld's policies and leadership have been instrumental in spreading violence, promoting terrorism, and strengthening ideological opposition to the U.S."
"It just galls me that the university can portray to the public that it is honored to appoint Rumsfeld as a distinguished member," Polhemus told The Herald.
Part of his concern over the appointment arises from Stanford's association with the Hoover Institution. Founded in 1919 by Herbert Hoover, the institution sought to develop a library collection on the causes and consequences of World War I. The institution has been a separate entity from the University since then, with its own mission, administration, budget and research. It aims to influence policymakers, local assemblymen, congressmen, the presidential administration and opinion-shapers such as media representatives and business people, according to Hoover's Public Affairs Manager Michele Horaney. "Today, it is seen as a resource on campus," she said.
Polhemus, however, said he believed Stanford should distance itself from the think tank. "The institution has a history of being a right-wing think tank and repository for conservative policy-making. That isn't Stanford, but in the public mind, it becomes associated with Stanford."
In the 1960's, Hoover and Stanford clashed on the issue of Vietnam. But over the past couple of decades, the two institutions have worked to develop a more cooperative relationship, Horaney said.
Polhemus predicted the appointment will once again threaten this cooperative relationship, causing "much trouble" for both institutions.
The role of the visiting fellow is to bring a "continual influx of expertise and ideas" to the Hoover Institution, according to its Web site. "I have asked (Rumsfeld) to join the distinguished group of scholars that will pursue new insights on the direction of thinking that the United States might consider going forward," Hoover Director John Raisian told The Stanford Daily.
Rumsfeld will be part of a task force of 10 to 12 experts that is set to meet five to 10 times this year. "The task force has a specific mission and a time limit," Horaney told The Herald. "He will be here only occasionally."
It is unclear when the former defense secretary will begin his commitment.
A recent New York Times article linked Rumsfeld's appointment and the defense of free speech with the controversy surrounding Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's recent speech at Columbia. Polhemus disagreed with the comparison. "Unlike in the case of President Ahmadinejad, Rumsfeld's appointment is not a free speech issue. It's an appointment. That's different," he said. As opposed to inviting a leader to speak, bestowing a title of distinguished fellow suggests Stanford condones Rumsfeld's ideology, Polhemus said.
Hoover awarded to Rumsfeld the title of "distinguished" fellow because he has a long association with the institution going back to the 1970's, according to Horaney. He has served as a member of the Hoover Board of Overseers and as a member of the executive committee of the board.
"From the time he was Congressman to CEO at several companies to his entry into government service, he's served the institution," she said.
The past appointments to fellowships at Hoover of Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and General John Abizaid, former commander of the U.S. Central Command, did not garner the same political criticism from Stanford faculty and students.
Polhemus explained the backlash in his e-mail to the Stanford community by stating the previous appointees had "intellectual and academic experience and achievement ... (while) Rumsfeld's disastrous leadership is (in)famous in the military, the media, the political establishment, and academia alike."
On campus, student groups, faculty and community members have banded together to form an informal anti-war coalition.
"We consider Rumsfeld to be a war criminal. What we're upset about is that Hoover is so closely tied with Stanford, that our name is being tarnished by his appointment," Stanford junior Laura Wadden, who is a part of the coalition, told The Herald.
According to Wadden, the campus reactions to the appointment have been mixed. On the one hand, she said, people are excited for Rumsfeld's arrival as a chance to learn from his experience. On the other, he is seen as a war criminal and a threat to Stanford's image.
One of the projects the coalition is developing to protest the appointment is a mock trial that will, Wadden hopes, include real lawyers, real judges and Rumsfeld himself. "We want to invite him to defend himself," Wadden said.
