TAOS, N.M. (KRQE) – The family of former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has announced that he has died at the age of 88. In a tweet, the family says Rumsfeld was in Taos, New Mexico when he died.
Rumsfeld served as the Secretary of Defense under President Gerald Ford from 1975 to 1977 and again from January 2001 to December 2006 under George W. Bush and had directed actions of the Defense Department following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, according to the U.S. Dept. of Defense. A former Navy pilot, Rumsfeld also served as White House Chief of Staff, U.S. Ambassador to NATO, U.S. Congressman, and was the chief executive officer of two Fortune 500 companies.
According to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Rumsfeld was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977. He has also been awarded 11 honorary degrees.
“History may remember him for his extraordinary accomplishments over six decades of public service, but for those who knew him best and whose lives were forever changed as a result, we will remember his unwavering love for his wife Joyce, his family and friends, and the integrity he brought to a life dedicated to country,” the family said in the statement.
Former US defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld speaks during a discussion on the Pentagon during his time in that office, March 29, 2011 at The Hudson Institute in Washington, DC. AFP PHOTO/Mandel NGAN (Photo by Mandel NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images) 
US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld speaks before the 2004 graduating class of the US Military Academy 29 May 2004 at West Point, NY. While hailing the overthrow of regimes in Afghanistan and Iraq, Rumsfeld warned that the war on terror, launched in response to the 11 September 2001 attacks, would dominate the cadets’ careers for years to come. AFP PHOTO/Stan HONDA (Photo by STAN HONDA / AFP) (Photo by STAN HONDA/AFP via Getty Images) 
US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld speaks to reporters during a press conference, 22 October 2002, at the Pentagon in Washington, DC. Rumsfeld said 22 October, the US government is preparing to free a small number of prisoners from its high-security jail in Cuba, in what would be the first release of combatants who are no longer considered a terrorist threat. AFP PHOTO/Joyce NALTCHAYAN (Photo by JOYCE NALTCHAYAN / AFP) (Photo by JOYCE NALTCHAYAN/AFP via Getty Images) 
US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld (L), meets 01 May 2003 with US Special Forces Troops at the US base in Kabul. Rumsfeld declared an end to “major combat” operations and a new era of stability and reconstruction in Afghanistan, 18 months after US-led forces toppled the Taliban regime. AFP PHOTO/Luke FRAZZAL/POOL AFP PHOTO/Luke FRAZZA (Photo by LUKE FRAZZA / AFP POOL / AFP) (Photo by LUKE FRAZZA/AFP POOL/AFP via Getty Images) 
ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA – SEPTEMBER 11: Former U.S. President George W. Bush (C), U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper (L) and former U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld participate in a wreath-laying ceremony at the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial to commemorate the anniversary of the September 11th terror attacks, on September 11, 2019 in Arlington, Virginia. The nation is marking the 18th anniversary of the terror attacks that took almost 3000 lives. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images) 
Former US defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld takes part in a wreath laying ceremony to commemorate 9/11 at the Pentagon Memorial in Washington, DC on September 11, 2019. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images) 
(From left) US Defense Secretary Mark Esper, former US president George W. Bush, and former defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld, take part in a wreath laying ceremony to mark the 18th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, on September 11, 2019, at the Pentagon in Washington, DC. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images) 
Former US President George W. Bush and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld attend a ceremony to mark the 18th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, on September 11, 2019, at the Pentagon in Washington, DC. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images) 
NORFOLK, VA – JULY 22: Former Vice President Dick Cheney (L) and former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld attend a commissioning ceremony on board the USS Gerald R. Ford CVN 78, on July 22, 2017 in Norfolk, Virginia. The USS Ford is projected to be deployed in the year 2020, powered by two Nuclear reactors and is 1,092 feet long with a 134 foot beam and can carry over 75 aircraft. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images) 
NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 20: Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld speaks at the 2016 Concordia Summit – Day 2 at Grand Hyatt New York on September 20, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Concordia Summit) 
NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 20: Former U.S. Congressman Donald Rumsfeld speaks at the 2016 Concordia Summit – Day 2 at Grand Hyatt New York on September 20, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Riccardo Savi/Getty Images for Concordia Summit) 
WASHINGTON, DC – JUNE 14: Chairman John Kerry (D-MA)(L), escorts former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld into a Senate Foreign Relations hearing on Capitol Hill, June 14, 2012 in Washington, DC. The committee is hearing testimony on ”The Law of the Sea Convention” which defines the rights and responsibilities of nations in their use of the world’s oceans. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images) 
Former US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and his wife Joyce Rumsfeld attend a wreath laying ceremony on September 10, 2011 at the impact point of Flight 77 at the Pentagon. AFP Photo/Paul J. Richards (Photo credit should read PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP via Getty Images)
