Susan Rice: The foreign policy expert whose role in Benghazi attacks may return to spearhead Biden campaign

Susan Rice, the potential Democratic choice for vice president, is considered one of the country’s leading experts on foreign policy. But while their experience will count in their favor, it will also give Republicans a clear plan of attack leading up to the November election.

The foreign policy expert was nominated as an ambassador to the United Nations by President Barack Obama, a nomination that the House of Representatives unanimously confirmed at the time.

But her time as ambassador to the United Nations – from 2009 to 2013 – and then later Mr Obama’s national security adviser, until 2017, has been called into question by Republicans – specifically her role in the Benghazi attacks.

U.S. messages in Benghazi, Libya, were attacked in September 2012, resulting in the deaths of four U.S. citizens, including Ambassador J Christopher Stevens.

After the attack, which was coordinated by members of the Islamic militant group Ansar al-Sharia, Rice made several television interviews following the attack was “spontaneously inspired” by violent protests in Cairo, Egypt. Ms Rice later said she made that claim based on American intelligence at the time.

In her book with the title Hard love, which was published last year, Ms Rice, 55, expressed regret over appearing on television following the attacks ahead of then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and then-National Security Adviser Tom Donilon.

“I believe Hillary Clinton and Tom Donilon appreciated what I did not do: the first person to tell the public about a very political tragedy would probably pay a price,” she wrote.

Republicans said Ms Rice intentionally abused the public at the time, but none of the 10 investigations into the attack found that any member of the Obama administration misbehaved.

A string of allegations followed Ms Rice to Benghazi, distancing herself from the prospect of succeeding Clinton as secretary of state. But it still encouraged Mr Obama to appoint her as his national security adviser.

During her time in the White House, Ms Rice formed a strong working relationship with then-Vice President Joe Biden, who she said would often stop by her office to discuss topics ranging from foreign policy to personal matters.

“My favorite unannounced visitor was Vice President Joe Biden,” Ms. Rice wrote Hard love.

Together, they worked on Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal – since withdrawn by Donald Trump – with other members of the Obama administration. Ms Rice also helped the US with her efforts in the Paris climate agreement, of which Mr Trump has also left the country since his presidency.

Mr. Biden said consistently through his intense pursuit of a running mate that he was looking for someone with whom he had a close personal relationship, similar to the one he shared with President Obama. The relationship he formed with Ms Rice while they were both part of the Obama administration helped send them to the top of his list.

But Ms Rice is currently the target of not one but two investigations in Congress. Although neither has yet provided evidence of the foreign policy expert’s misconduct, the nomination of Mr Biden’s vice president would only refute Republican attacks and refute Benghazi’s accusations.

Another source of Republican control comes from an email. Ms Rice sent herself in recent days with the Obama administration, which detailed an Oval Office meeting a few weeks earlier with Mr. Biden, Mr. Obama, and then-FBI Director James Comey. At the meeting, they expressed concerns about Michael Flynn’s contact with Russians in the weeks before the former general would take on the role of national security adviser to Mr Trump.

Mr. Trump and allies have indicated that the email provides evidence of the Obama administration trying to frame Mr Flynn, but so far the idea has remained merely a conspiracy theory, entitled “Obamagate” by the incumbent president , instead of showing evidence of collusion.

‘It does not matter if what the Republicans accuse them of is bullshit. What’s important is that people turn on Fox News every day and see ‘Susan Rice’ and ‘Corruption’ and ‘Obamagate’ at the bottom of the screen, ‘one Democratic campaign veteran said earlier. The independent.

Ms Rice married Canadian-born former ABC News executive producer Ian Officer Cameron in 1992, after the couple met as students at Stanford University. They have two children together: one daughter and one son.

Her son, John David Rice-Cameron, followed in his parents’ footsteps through Stanford University. But his path in politics has changed since he became the president of the Republicans at Stanford College and hosted events such as “Make Stanford Great Again.”

“I have a 23-year-old son whom I love dearly, whose politics are very, very different from my own and from the rest of our family,” Ms Rice told NPR. ‘My son and I will have some strong agreements on some business policies, not all. And yet, at the end of the day, you know, I love him dearly, and he loves me. ‘

Ms Rice found herself among high-profile Democrats within the Obama administration after she first wanted to become a U.S. senator as a young child.

But growing up in Washington DC, she discovered that her hometown lacked representatives in Congress because it was not considered a state in the U.S. – a provision that could change in the coming years.

Instead, she garnered a deep resume in foreign policy, although she has never held a chosen position, a quality that at first made her a surprising choice for consideration as a running mate for Mr Biden.

After graduating with a degree in history from Stanford University and then becoming a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University at the age of 21, Rice joined the Bill Clinton administration.

She first served on President Clinton’s National Security Council for four years between 1993 and 1997, before moving to the State Department until 2001 as Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs.

Although Ms Rice had long supported the Clinton family, she instead placed her distinction behind President Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election when he ran against Hillary Clinton, and landed her in high esteem with Mr. Obama when he once was elected.

Her reasoning came down to how Mr. Obama had always been a staunch opponent of the Iraq war, while then-Senator Hillary Clinton supported sending troops. Mrs. Clinton would later express her regret for making that vote.

Before talks about Ms Rice being Mr Biden’s chosen running mate, the former Obama administration adviser indicated that she might run against Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, in the U.S. race. Senate in 2020 – an announcement that would honor her childhood dream. Six months after she showed interest in the race, Mrs. Rice decided not to run.

Choosing not to run could work in her favor, as she could now be the first black woman to run for vice president on a main party card. If she and Mr. Biden win against the Trump / Pence ticket, Ms. Rice would become the first woman and first person of color to hold the position of vice president, with the opportunity to support her political career for years.