Summary Obama's top UN diplomat appears to have a clearer path to succeeding retiring Secretary of State.
President Barack Obama s top UN diplomat appears to have a clearer path to succeeding retiring Secretary of State Hilary Rodham Clinton after two top Republican critics moderated their accusations that Ambassador Susan Rice was part of a government cover-up of what happened in the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the U.S. Consulate in Libya.
The political furour over the Benghazi assault that killed the US ambassador and three other Americans exploded before the Nov. 6 presidential election and continued for weeks afterward, with Rice becoming the focus of Republican attacks. Rice is widely considered Obama s top pick to replace Clinton during his second four-year term.
Now, while refusing to back away from charges of a cover-up, Republican Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham have toned down their complaints, suggesting Republicans may not block Rice s appointment if Obama chooses to nominate her.
Still, the political conflict over a foreign policy issue was a sign of the severe polarization gripping the United States. It could portend difficulties for Obama as he seeks required Senate approval for nominations as he revamps his administration at the start of a second four-year term.
During the presidential campaign, Republicans lambasted Obama s handling of the attack in an attempt to cast doubt on his image as a successful steward of US security and foreign policy. That image was enhanced after Obama ordered the risky attack in Pakistan that killed Osama bin Laden.
Challenger Mitt Romney and other Republicans accused the Obama administration of reacting to the consulate assault too slowly, and questioned if it was providing sufficient security for dangerous diplomatic missions.
After Obama s decisive victory, McCain and Graham continued to hammer Obama over how his administration over Libya, especially over how it informed Americans about the nature of the attack.
The senators focused on comments Rice made on Sunday talk shows a few days after the attack, blaming the violence on a mob enraged by an anti-Muslim video produced in the U.S. and posted on YouTube. The Benghazi attack coincided with other riots at U.S. diplomatic facilities across the Muslim world in response to the religiously insulting film. It later became clear, though, that the attack was carried out by a Libyan militia associated with al-Qaida.
Obama and Rice have insisted the explanation she gave was a result of a report provided by American intelligence agencies.
But McCain, who was defeated by Obama in the 2008 presidential election, threatened to prevent Rice s Senate confirmation should Obama nominate her as secretary of state.
"Susan Rice should have known better, and if she didn t know better, she s not qualified," said McCain, a hawk on military issues and a former Vietnam prisoner of war. "I will do everything in my power to block her from being the United States secretary of state."
He was joined by his friend Graham.
"This is about the role she played around four dead Americans, when it seems to be that the story coming out of the administration and she s the point person is so disconnected to reality I don t trust her," said Graham. "And the reason I don t trust her is because I think she knew better, and if she didn t know better she shouldn t be the voice of America."
