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Two new books just out you're going to hear a lot about in coming days. Both go inside the little-known lives of two public personalities: First, Condoleeza Rice's "No Higher Honor," the long-awaited memoir of her years in Washington working for President George W. Bush, whose administration has generated a mini-industry of book publishing the last year or so. "Decision Points." Second, "Steve Jobs" by Walter Isaacson. It's an authorized biography rushed into print following the Oct. 5 cancer death of the icon inventor. Rice is talking about the book on her new Twitter account here. And Newsweek/The Daily Beast...

Former Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice more than holds her own against Lawrence O'Donnell in an 11 minute sit down interview on the reasons for going to war in Iraq and the WoT. She artfully schools Lawrence on how this interview was going to be conducted. He kept trying to hi-jack the interview as usual and she wouldn't let him. She effectively tamed him and was able to maintain her objective. The woman is simply awesome and dynamic. It's always good to see someone put O'Donnell in his place from time to time, to cut him down to size by...

On December 3, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice gave CBS's Katie Couric a much-needed lesson on why America invaded Iraq. When Couric said to her guest during an "HBO History Makers Series" interview, "Documentaries have been made about how intelligence was incorrectly analyzed and cherry-picked to build an argument for war, and memos from that time do suggest that officials knew there was a small chance of actually finding weapons of mass destruction in Iraq," Rice stopped the host dead in her tracks (video follows with transcript and commentary):

Condoleezza Rice said Friday that one of her deepest regrets from her time as secretary of state was the failure of the Bush administration to achieve real reform of immigration laws. "We need immigration reform. I don't care if it's for the person who crawls across the desert to earn $5 an hour, or for Sergey Brin, who came here from Russia and founded Google," she said at an economic summit at Stanford University. "As a country, we can't have people living in the shadows. It's just wrong. It's not only ineffective, it's wrong." She said immigrants were critical to...

Several people sent me the link to this absolutely disgusting post by “progressive” blogger TBogg, who, according to Sitemeter statistics, gets about 10,000 visits a day. It’s a cliché these days to point out that the most virulent, unrestrained racism (and antisemitism) is found almost exclusively on the left—but here’s one of the most blatant examples yet.

In Arabic it says: ""The massacre of children in Qana 2, is the gift of Rice. The clever bombs..Stupid," Banner appeard in downtown Beirut. Fifty-two people were killed, many of them sleeping children, when Israeli warplanes blitzed the Lebanese village of Qana, triggering global outrage and warnings of retribution for a "war crime" as a ceasefire appeared more remote than ever.(AFP/Ramzi Haidar)

Dr. Madeline Albright - former Secretary of State was invited by the Commonwealth Club to speak at the Santa Clara, CA Convention Center today, about 3 miles from the school where I teach so I thought I would drop by and listen in. Not only was she the first female US Secretary of State and the highest ranking female in American history, Dr. Albright was unanimously approved by the Senate. But, what I didn't know was that her father, an ex-diplomat in Czechoslavakia before getting political immunity here in the States and then becoming professor and dean of international studies...

LONDON: When it came time to grab a few hours' rest before landing on a secret mission in Baghdad last weekend, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice insisted that British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw take the bed in her aircraft's private cabin. Mr Straw was horrified when he woke to find that Dr Rice, one of the world's most powerful women, had slept on the floor so her guest was more comfortable. What one British newspaper called Bedgate reflects a growing friendship between the two and their bid to work more closely on issues such as Iran, Iraq and the...

CONDOLEEZZA RICE represents some of the very best of America, and some of the worst. Her own life demonstrates the extraordinary possibility that America's great meritocracy offers. She told her story to 300 university students in Sydney, who had turned out with evident scepticism to listen to the US Secretary of State, on Thursday. "I was born in Birmingham, Alabama, in the south of the United States at a time when my family couldn't go to a restaurant or stay in a hotel, when I went to segregated schools," she told them. "I didn't have a white classmate until we...

RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - Hamas has apparently won the Palestinian parliamentary election, a senior official of President Mahmoud Abbas's long-dominant Fatah faction said on Thursday. A Hamas victory, if confirmed by official results, would put it in position to dominate a new Palestinian cabinet, which would dramatically shake up the Palestinian Authority and likely put peacemaking with Israel in a deep freeze. "It seems that Hamas will form the next government," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, after a Hamas leader claimed victory in Wednesday's vote. Fatah and Hamas had both said earlier that a coalition...

United States President George W Bush has condemned the deadly series of bomb blasts in Delhi and said the "heinous" attacks have yet again showed that terrorists were enemies of humanity. Joining a host of world leaders in deploring the attacks, Bush said, "By targetting innocent civilians making final preparations for holiday celebrations, terrorists have demonstrated yet again that they are enemies of humanity and contemptuous of the values all the civilised world shares. "The United States strongly condemns the heinous terrorist attacks in India," a statement issued by the president's press office Sunday said. "On behalf of the American...

Under Condoleezza Rice, U.S. foreign policy continues to veer in the direction of the "Arabism" of her mentor Brent Scowcroft and James Baker. Diana West points to the latest evidence. First, according to West (who cites worldtribune.com), the Bush adminstration snubbed Israel's efforts to provide aid in the early aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Then, once it finally accepted Israel's aid, the State Department apparently omitted Israel's name from the list of countries participating in the relief effort, a list that touts Arab aid-givers. These affronts may be less the work of Rice than of Karen Hughes, to whom President Bush...

"A reader living in Moscow," writes National Review's Jay Nordlinger, "sent me a photo from a rally in Azerbaijan, which showed a youth holding up a poster of President Bush with the words, 'We Want Freedom.' The reader commented, 'It's good to remember whom people turn to when they're desperate — and it ain't Kofi Annan."' Indeed. It is fashionable in some circles to invoke the United Nations as the touchstone of moral authority, but realists know better. They look to the United States, not the UN, as the great moral engine in world affairs. Like the Lebanese who waved...

TOKYO — In a speech laying out an American vision for the future of Asia, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today urged China to allow for an open, representative government, adding that a strong U.S. military would help that process. Rice's speech at Tokyo's Roman Catholic Sophia University outlined what the Bush administration wants to see as Asia grows and changes. At the heart of the plan is the goal of a community of democratic nations that share values and take responsibility for global problem-solving. "Time and again we have seen that economic and political openness cannot long be separated,"...

Five died and 31 wounded in two explosions with Kandahar KABUL - At least five people were killed and 31 wounded Thursday during two simultaneous explosions with Kandahar, the large city of the south of Afghanistan, announced local persons in charge. "Two explosions occurred at the same time, one in the center, the other in the west of the city. We have five died confirmed and 31 wounded ", affirmed by telephone with the AFP Khaled Pashtun, the director of the Businesses external of the municipality. These explosions, whose origin had not been given initially, intervened whereas the American...

ABBAS MUSTERS WORLD SUPPORT 2.3.2005. 08:22:40 RELATED STORIES - Palestinian talks to begin- Sharon demands action- Tel Aviv blast: 4 dead Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas has won global support for reforms to his administration at a key meeting in London, promising in return to take action against militants and renew peace talks with Israel. The London Meeting was attended by officials from 23 nations and six international institutions — including UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice – but not by Israel. Opening the meeting British Prime Minister Tony Blair said the aim was to...

February 12, 2005--In a very early look at the 2008 Presidential Election, Senator Hillary Clinton leads Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice 47% to 40%. At the same time, Secretary Rice leads Senator John Kerry 45% to 43%. The survey was conducted January 29-30, before Dr. Rice's first international tour as Secretary of State. Since the survey was taken, Americans have grown more optimistic about the situation in Iraq. Fifty-one percent (51%) of voters believe that Senator Clinton is politically liberal while 27% say she is a moderate. For Senator Kerry, 46% said liberal and 31% moderate. Secretary of State Rice...

Just a useless vanity, but what the heck, haven't done one yet: Was watching Condi speak this morning. She is so smart, just nails it, etc. Then it hit me like a rock as I watched and I literally said out loud: "Holy Sh*t, I'm looking at the next president of the United States." I just really felt strong about it. Thoughts?

MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) -- In the course of three short months, the political system has come full circle: a presidential campaign, an inauguration, a State of the Union address and now this - another presidential race. A dozen or so ambitious Republicans and Democrats already are warming up for 2008.Former Democratic vice presidential nominee John Edwards is taking on poverty and showing off a new stump speech. Republican Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts has donated more than $250,000 to GOP causes, collecting political IOUs while planning visits to early voting states. Democratic Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana is hiring veteran...

Welcome Remarks to Employees (Applause.) Thank you very much. Thank you. Well, this is a little different welcome than the first time that I came to work at the State Department. Now, that may surprise some of you, but I was, in 1977, an intern in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. (Laughter and applause.) Now, there's a lesson in that: Be good to your interns. (Laughter.) I want to thank you for this really, really warm welcome. I first want to start by just saying how much I admire and appreciate the leadership of Secretary Colin Powell over...

In light of their reaction to the nomination of Condoleezza Rice as secretary of state, I gather liberals have gotten over their enthusiasm for multiculturalist milestones. It's interesting that they dropped their celebrations of the "first woman!" "first black!" "first Asian!" designations at the precise moment that we are about to get our first black female secretary of state. When Madeline Albright was appointed the FIRST WOMAN secretary of state, the media was euphoric. (And if memory serves, Monica Lewinsky was the first Jewish female to occupy her various positions on the president's, uh, staff.)

For those bad-news-from-Iraq-only information consumers, stop reading here. There have been several recent developments out of Iraq that should give some comfort to those who believe that Arabs and Muslims are capable of embracing democracy. There have been military victories in Iraq, a debt relief agreement for the country has been hammered out, and Iraq’s independent electoral commission has set a firm date for elections. First Najaf was cleaned up, then Sadr City, then Fallujah, then Mosul… Yes, Iraq’s “insurgency” won’t go away overnight, but it is certainly getting harder and harder for the “militants” – they’re either dead or...

A SMALL TRIBUTE TO THIS MOST INCREDIBLE WOMAN THE REPUBLICAN PARTY, THE PARTY OF INCLUSION

This week, George W. Bush put an end to civil war in one of the world’s most important locales: his Cabinet. With the nomination of Condoleeza Riceto succeed Colin Powell – an heroic man and a patriot – as secretary of state, the president acted to replace internal gridlock with a smoother implementation of his anti-terrorism policies. This shakeup will have one vitally important effect on foreign relations, according to columnist David Gergen: “When Rice travels as secretary of state to other capitals, everyone will know that what she says represents with great fidelity what the president thinks.” “This is what Powell...

Bypassed for PCUSA honors, Rice is new secretary of state By John H. Adams The Layman Online Tuesday, November 16, 2004 In naming Condoleezza "Condi" Rice as the nation's new secretary of state, President George W. Bush chose an evangelical Presbyterian who has never mustered a mention in the denomination's selections for Women of Faith Awards. How Rice, who turned 50 on Nov. 14, became a Presbyterian in the first place is a story that resonates with the Presbyterian Church (USA)'s attempt to increase its minority membership. But, despite her deep faith, her public service for President Bush and his...

A US-European rift surfaced today over how harshly to deal with Iran and its suspect nuclear program, with the Europeans ignoring American suggestions and circulating their own recommendations to other delegates at a key meeting of the UN atomic agency. Diplomats at a board of governors meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency had suggested earlier that the United States and the European Union were making progress in drafting common language for a resolution that would set a deadline for Iran to meet demands designed to dispel fears it was trying to make nuclear arms.But the latest draft, obtained...

"The Russians are coming...The Russians are coming..." Well, that could have been the headlines in Israeli newspapers until a few days ago, before Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov came to Israel. Now, after meeting with Israeli officials, the headlines could be, "Russian FM: Chechen Muslim terror evil, but justifies support for PLO Terror State and help for Iranian Nukes." The day before the Russian Foreign Minister came to Israel, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon phoned Russian President Vladimir Putin, to express his shock at the seizure of the Russian school in Beslan. Sharon told Putin that, "We must concentrate political and...

Mr Fineman, As I read your latest article, I was introduced to a reality equally as frightening as an armed, malicious, mass-murdering enemy; and that would be a press institution globally unrestrained by integrity, logic and facts. The media, as represented by characters such as you, is now an agitprop dispensation machine. Regardless of how often or how strongly some may protest the fact of bias, a mainstream media institution that behaves in lock step to subvert truth is more dangerous to this nation and everyone within, than any armed enemy. As I note your not-so-subtle inferences, do let's be...

Freep this poll quick! I'm in Huntsville, AL on business and they are asking people to go to www.waff.com and answer whether you think Condi was truthful (or words to that effect) They are going to announce results after news. Quick - go forth and freep! Jag

Condoleezza, Condoleezza, they have called you to come up upon the hill to testify; they will try to beat up "Dubya" with your answers, and they'll call each truthful thing you say a lie; The lefties of the med-ia will berate you, though carefully, for they must be PC; many ho-urs you have spent before them do not count now, so look out now! They will try hard to trick and to trap you, but if anyone can handle them, 'tis thee!

It isn't clear who was behind the brutal attack in Spain that killed 200 and wounded more than 1,400 people, but National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice said today that in the global war on terrorism, this is just more evidence of the lengths to which terrorists will go to try to intimidate free people. In an appearance today on NBC's "Meet the Press" with commentator Tim Russert, Rice said Spanish authorities still suspect the Basque terrorist group ETA in the bombings, but acknowledge it might have been foreign terrorists such as al Qaeda. "We have offered to do everything that...

NEW YORK- President Bush's National Security Adviser, Condoleeza Rice, is mistaken in her claim that the Malaysian prime minister's anti-Semitic speech was "not emblematic of the Muslim world." Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad told the Organization of the Islamic Conference on October 16, 2003, that "The Jews rule the world by proxy: they get others to fight and die for them." His speech "received a standing ovation from Muslim leaders" at the conference. (New York Times, Oct. 21, 2003) Four days later, Dr. Rice condemned the remarks, but added: "I don't think they are emblematic of the Muslim world." (New...

Listen in on Oprah's one-on-one conversation with our cool, collected national security advisor. Hear about her downtime (piano, football, shopping) and uptime (faith, unity, power)—and why the terrorists have already lost. "In all my years of interviewing, I have never been prouder to spell my name w-o-m-a-n than after spending time with Condoleezza Rice." — Oprah

US vs Pyongyang: Watch RumsfeldBy Phar Kim Beng HONG KONG - As talks finally get under way between the United States and North Korea, the latter, which has made obstinacy and diplomatic misbehavior an art form, would do well to keep in mind the growing influence and staying power in Washington of Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. With the US victory in Iraq all but declared, barely a year after a previous triumph in Afghanistan, Rumsfeld's influence has increased by several notches. Together with other neo-conservatives who urged the Iraq war, "Rummy", as he is affectionately known in Washington, is...

Hillary, Liddy and Condoleezza By Mark Magro. Posted 12/6/2002 8:13:00 AM Newsmax Friday, December 6, 2002 With Al Gore’s book Joined at the Heart making a poor sales showing, many are left to wonder if Al Gore has what it takes to run for president. If not Al Gore, who can possibly hope to compete with the immensely popular George Bush in the next election? One possible candidate may be Sen. John Kerry from Massachuttes, who has already formed an exploratory committee. But one possible candidate who Republicans can help but wonder about is Hilary Clinton. If she does seek...