Rumsfeld Oldest AND Youngest Defense Secretary?

[asterion]

I was reading the London Times today, and ran across an article about how Spain was asking Bush to rein in Rumsfeld. The article included this (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-594124,00.html) little tidbit "The veteran politician, 70, who is the youngest and oldest man to serve as US Defence Secretary, is very much his “own man”, and won cult status for his daily televised briefings during the Afghanistan war."

Now, I'm used to running into phrases like the above where the meaning is some obscure truth. But this just doesn't make sense to me.

[Nametag]

He was Defense Secretary before, under another president (Bush Sr.?).

[BobT]

Rumsfeld was Sec of Defense in the Ford Administration back in 1975. So, substract 28 years from his age and you have a 42-year old in the job.

Also there haven't been many people in the job. It didn't come into being until after WWII.

[Earl of Sandwhich]

He was Secretary of Defense under President Ford from 1975 until 1977, so he was the youngest back then. Now, over 25 years later, he's the oldest.

[asterion]

Ah. I wondered if it was something like that.

[mhendo]

From Rumslfeld's bio (http://www.whitehouse.gov/government/rumsfeld-bio.html) at the White House website:In August 1974, he was called back to Washington, DC, to serve in the Ford Administration successively as:

Chairman of the transition to the Presidency of Gerald R. Ford (1974);
Chief of Staff of the White House and a member of the President's Cabinet (1974-1975); and, as
The 13th U.S. Secretary of Defense, the youngest in the country's history (1975-1977).