Rice: Bush administration dismissed concerns about Iraq’s security

{mosads}In addition to providing color about interpersonal relationships in the White House, Rice’s memoirs — and tweets — chronicle her evolving view on issues like the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

“I thought peace was within reach,” Rice tweeted, linking to an excerpt in the book that outlines her disappointment with negotiations but optimism for the future.

Rice’s memoir, No Higher Honor, also focuses on the aftermath of 2005’s Hurricane Katrina. An excerpt linked to by Rice expresses remorse for her decision to go shoe shopping and attend a Broadway play as the storm was hitting the Gulf Coast.

“I wasn’t just the secretary of state with responsibility for foreign affairs; I was the highest ranking black in the administration and a key advisor to the President. What had I been thinking?” Rice wrote.

But the former Cabinet official also saw racial overtones in the handling of the storm.

“Mr. President, I’m coming back. I don’t know how much I can do, but we clearly have a race problem,” she reportedly told Bush after seeing coverage of the damage.