Susan Rice steps aside as Secretary of State possibility

Responding to the continuing assault upon her handling of the Libyan embassy attack, UN Ambassador Susan Rice has withdrawn her name from consideration to succeed Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State.

“I am fully confident that I could serve our country ably and effectively in that role,” Rice wrote in a letter to President Obama today. “However, if nominated, I am now convinced that the confirmation process would be lengthy, disruptive and costly – to you and to our most pressing national and international priorities.” “That trade-off is simply not worth it to our country,” she added.

Republican Sens. John McCain, Kelly Ayotte and Lindsey Graham have been particularly voracious in their attacks on Rice, particularly her handling of the attack on the States' embassy in Benghazi, an attack that left U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three others dead.

(source)