Condoleezza Rice was the first female national security advisor and second female secretary of state of the United States. Rice was born in Birmingham, Alabama, in the still-segregated South. She received a master’s degree from Notre Dame University in 1975 and worked for the State Department during the James E. Carter administration. Rice returned to academia, earned a doctorate from the University of Denver, and had a distinguished career at Stanford University. She served on the National Security Council during the administration of George H. W. Bush and became the foreign policy advisor for George W. Bush during his presidential campaign in 2000. Once in office, Bush appointed Rice as his national security advisor.

Rice emerged as a central figure in crafting the U.S. military and diplomatic strategy in wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks. She advocated the use of coalitions of the willing that would capitalize on utilizing those assets and capabilities that allied states were willing to contribute to the U.S. response, but which would retain policy control and operational command for the Bush administration. Rice helped coordinate the military campaign Operation Enduring Freedom (as part of the Afghanistan intervention) with the U.S. and allied militaries. She also worked with Secretary of State Colin Powell to ensure that the U.S. response to the attacks included nonmilitary actions such as increased international law enforcement cooperation and the development of a comprehensive homeland security policy.

Rice helped develop the 2002 National Security Strategy of the United States, commonly referred to as the Bush Doctrine, which emphasized the use of preemptive military strikes to prevent the use of weapons of mass destruction. She was also instrumental in the administration’s hard-line policy toward the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein, including the effort to isolate Iraq and formulate an international coalition, and was one of the main proponents of the 2003 Iraq War. In March 2004, Rice became the first national security advisor to publicly testify on policy issues when she appeared before the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States (9/11 Commission). During the 2004 presidential campaign, Rice became the first national security advisor to openly campaign on behalf of a candidate. She faced domestic criticism by Democrats for her hawkish security policies and for her advocacy against domestic affirmative action policies. After the election, Rice was appointed secretary of state, becoming the second female and second African American to occupy the post. She handpicked her successor as national security advisor, Stephen J. Hadley, her former deputy.

Once in office in 2005, Rice worked to repair relations with major allies such as France and Germany that were opposed to the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. She also endeavored to increase international support for the continuing U.S. efforts in Iraq. The sound working relationship between Rice and Hadley ensured that the State Department and the security establishment had a high degree of cooperation. Her closeness with Bush provided her with greater access, and therefore more influence, than her predecessor Powell. One result was that in the second George W. Bush administration, Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld had less influence on broad security policy, while Rice increased, or restored, the role of the State Department in formulating foreign and security policy.

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