Behind Public Optimism on Iraq, Administration Had Doubts

So, again, why is Rumsfeld still there? He could have left at the end of the first term, but No.

So why has Bush not excepted his resignation or fired him?

We still say the reason has to do with 9/11.

Behind Public Optimism on Iraq, Administration Had Doubts - washingtonpost.com:

In May, President Bush spoke in Chicago and gave a characteristically upbeat forecast: 'Years from now, people will look back on the formation of a unity government in Iraq as a decisive moment in the story of liberty, a moment when freedom gained a firm foothold in the Middle East and the forces of terror began their long retreat.'

Two days later, the intelligence division of the Joint Chiefs of Staff circulated a secret intelligence assessment to the White House that contradicted the president's forecast.
Instead of a 'long retreat,' the report predicted a more violent 2007: 'Insurgents and terrorists retain the resources and capabilities to sustain and even increase current level of violence through the next year.'

A graph included in the assessment measured attacks from May 2003 to May 2006. It showed some significant dips, but the current number of attacks against U.S.-led coalition forces and Iraqi authorities was as high as it had ever been -- exceeding 3,500 a month. (In July the number would be over 4,500.) The assessment also included a pessimistic report on crude oil production, the delivery of electricity and political progress.

On May 26, the Pentagon released an unclassified report to Congress, required by law, that contradicted the Joint Chiefs' secret assessment. The public report sent to Congress said the 'appeal and motivation for continued violent action will begin to wane in early 2007.'