Condoleezza Rice discusses Bush White House tensions in new book
Former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice defends the war in Iraq and details tensions within the Bush White House team in her new book 鈥淣o Higher Honor,鈥� scheduled for release on Nov. 1.
Rice鈥檚 memoir, which follows her years in the Bush White House, comes after books by former Vice-President Dick Cheney, former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, former Secretary of State Colin L. Powell, and former President George W. Bush.
According to , Rice says in 鈥淣o Higher Honor鈥� that she regrets going on a shopping trip in New York as Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath were engulfing New Orleans, calling the decision 鈥渢one deaf,鈥� and she states that she believes the Arab Spring uprisings are the result of Bush鈥檚 agenda to bring democracy to other areas of the world. Rice also discusses perceived threats to the US after 9/11 that the public didn鈥檛 know about at the time, including the possibility of radioactive and smallpox attacks on Washington D.C.
In 鈥淣o Higher Honor,鈥� Rice details how she threatened to resign when Bush issued an order 鈥� an order which had been the work of White House counsel Albert R. Gonzales 鈥� that authorized military commissions, without notifying her first.
鈥淚f this happens again, either Al Gonzales or I will have to resign,鈥� Rice says she told Bush, . The president apologized, and Rice writes that she doesn鈥檛 think it was Bush鈥檚 fault.
But Rice also recounts a disagreement she had with Bush over sending more troops to Iraq. Rice told the president they should pull troops out of cities.
鈥淪o what鈥檚 your plan, Condi?鈥� Rice says Bush asked her. 鈥淲e鈥檒l just let them kill each other, and we鈥檒l stand by and try to pick up the pieces?鈥�
鈥淚f they want to have a civil war, we鈥檙e going to have to let them,鈥� she says she retorted.
But Rice says she told the president no one had been more committed to winning in Iraq and that Bush replied, 鈥淚 know.鈥�
Rice also writes of her encounters with foreign leaders, including Muammar Qaddafi, whom she says had an 鈥渆erie fascination with me.鈥� Rice also says that Qaddafi made a strange video that had pictures of her with a song titled 鈥淏lack Flower in the White House鈥� that played in the background.
鈥淚t was weird, but at least it wasn鈥檛 raunchy,鈥� Rice writes of the video.
Rice says in her book that Omar Hassan al-Bashir, Sudan鈥檚 president, looked 鈥渁s though he was on drugs鈥� and that she felt like she needed a shower after shaking hands with the president of Lebanon, 脡mile Lahoud.
Rice says she often argued with Cheney and that they had a particularly heated exchange over the issue of whether to publicly acknowledge keeping Khalid Shaikh Mohammed and other suspects secretly imprisoned. Rice writes that Rumsfeld said, 鈥淚 don鈥檛 do detainees鈥� at one point and that he tried not to get involved in arguments over the subject.
Rice says she also had disagreements with Rumsfeld and that she once asked him what was wrong in their relationship.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e obviously bright and committed, but it just doesn鈥檛 work,鈥� she says Rumsfeld told her.
Molly Driscoll is a Monitor contributor.
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