No Higher Honor?

I've been reading Condi's memoir...

I find it interesting in two aspects. First is its portrayal of the relationships between the key players within the government (like seeing how the State and Defense folks are hating each other) and the details about the meetings with foreign heads of state and other high ranking officials (Condi meeting Gaddafi who has a crush on her :D). Second is its coverage of the decisions that are made (most heated one being the Iraq war) and their justifications.

There are a few things that I want to note:

- Rice is overly protective of the President. She constantly tries to justify his decisions (most of which she shares with him) and emphasize his leadership qualities. I felt some of the latter was not genuine.

- Rice seems to be a sane voice brought in to keep a balance on the neocons, often siding with Colin P on critical issues during the first Bush term. However, as time goes on, she seems to get closer to the other side.

- It seems to me that Bush did not pick his staff but rather he was picked with them. Even Condi was introduced to him by father Bush. The quality of the President's decisions depend on the quality of the options put in front of him. It appears to me that Dick C and Don R are running the show, making sure that the President sees things from the perspective they prefer.

I have respect for Rice, especially because she is an academic. I'm not done with the book yet, but I enjoy it a lot.