Even though U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Susan Rice was never formally nominated to serve as Secretary of State, the scrutiny she faced from the GOP as President Obama’s presumed top pick was intense. Senators Jon McCain (R-AZ), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) lead the efforts against her nomination.
It seems this was the reason to why Rice took her name out of the running, as first reported by NBC. Rice wrote in this morning Washington Post:
As it became clear that my potential nomination would spark an enduring partisan battle, I concluded that it would be wrong to allow this debate to continue distracting from urgent national priorities — creating jobs, growing our economy, addressing our deficit, reforming our immigration system and protecting our national security. These are the issues that deserve our focus, not a controversy about me.
President Obama will meet with Susan Rice this afternoon in the Oval Office. It is their first face-to-face meeting since she has taken her name out of the running. So with Susan Rice out, will Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) be the next Secretary of State? Tell us what you think on our Facebook page or in the comments section below.