Sen. John McCain, member of Senate Armed Services Committee
"While Secretary Rumsfeld and I have had our differences, he deserves America's respect and gratitude for his many years of public service. He has mine. This important change offers the administration and Congress a fresh opportunity to examine all aspects of our strategy and tactics in Iraq and make whatever changes are necessary to succeed there. I look forward to discussing with Secretary-designate Gates ideas for correcting mistakes of the past, whether we are following the right strategy of today and whether we have sufficient troops in Iraq to provide the level of security that is indispensable to defeating the insurgency and achieving a political resolution of sectarian conflict there."

Rep. Duncan Hunter, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee
"I talked to him before the resignation announcement. And I think he's really doing it because he sees now with the Democrat leadership in Congress, it's going to be hard to get past what I see as personal animosities toward him and get the job done. I think he perceives that the same way. He thinks that will get in the way of doing a good job."

Outgoing Sen. Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tennessee
"I hope that this change will bring a fresh perspective to our fight on the global war on terror and help build a bipartisan defense policy in the months ahead,"