Memoir by former defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld to come out in 2010

NEW YORK -- Donald Rumsfeld, the powerful defense secretary and architect of the Iraq war who left office two years ago as he faced ever-rising criticism, is working on a memoir to be published by Penguin Group (USA) in 2010.

"This will be a story that will span my lifetime," Rumsfeld, 75, said in interview Monday from his office in Washington, D.C. "It will be something that I will try hard to have be very fair and honest and useful. I hope it adds to people's information about these times."

Books by such former Bush administration officials as treasury secretary Paul O'Neill and CIA director George Tenet have come out, but Rumsfeld's take is closer. A longtime friend and close ally of Vice President Dick Cheney, Rumsfeld was among the most influential defense secretaries ever and the most visible and controversial since Robert McNamara in the 1960s.

Rumsfeld met with several publishers and received "big bids" for his book, according to a publishing official who asked not to be identified because of the sensitive nature of the negotiations. But Rumsfeld decided to accept no advance, only money for expenses. Any profits will be donated to a foundation he established recently to fund such projects as grants for "promising young individuals" interested in public service.

"I didn't know when I wanted to do it and how fast I wanted to do it, and I didn't want to feel an obligation to anybody," said Rumsfeld, whose book is currently untitled.

His memoir will be released by Sentinel, a conservative imprint of Penguin. The deal was negotiated by Washington attorney Robert Barnett, who worked on it with fellow Williams & Connelly lawyer Michael O'Connor. Barnett has handled multimillion-dollar contracts for former president Bill Clinton, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and many others.

Rumsfeld's career in government began in the 1960s, when he was a Republican congressman from Illinois and continued through his work in several administrations, including defense secretary under former president Gerald Ford and defense secretary again -- the only person to hold that position twice -- under the current President Bush.

He is famous for his intelligence, demanding personality, endless memos and unpredictable remarks.

"He hasn't given me any indication that he's going to dodge anything. He's been refreshingly and divertingly candid in my presence," Sentinel publisher Adrian Zackheim said. "He's a fantastic storyteller, and he has extraordinary recall, as you would think. And he's fantastic about details, just like you would think."

"Oh, goodness, one always hopes to be candid and honest," Rumsfeld said, adding that the press tends to "overplay" personalities and that he would deal with that "honestly and directly."

"I don't plan to write any kind of a 'quickie Washington book.' I plan to take my time. I expect [the book] will be very well researched and carefully documented."