People will soon be thanking Bush: Rice
Posted on: December 29, 2008
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that despite President Bush’s low approval ratings, people will soon “start to thank this president for what he’s done.”
“So we can sit here and talk about the long record, but what I would say to you is that this president has faced tougher circumstances than perhaps at any time since the end of World War II, and he has delivered policies that are going to stand the test of time,” Rice said.
The secretary of state brushed off reports that suggest the United States’ image is suffering abroad. She praised the administration’s ability to change the conversation in the Middle East.
“This isn’t a popularity contest. I’m sorry, it isn’t. What the administration is responsible to do is to make good choices about Americans’ interests and values in the long run — not for today’s headlines, but for history’s judgment,” she said.
“And I am quite certain that when the final chapters are written and it’s clear that Saddam Hussein’s Iraq is gone in favor of an Iraq that is favorable to the future of the Middle East; when the history is written of a U.S.-China relationship that is better than it’s ever been; an India relationship that is deeper and better than it’s ever been; a relationship with Brazil and other countries of the left of Latin America, better than it’s ever been …
“When one looks at what we’ve been able to do in terms of changing the conversation in the Middle East about democracy and values, this administration will be judged well, and I’ll wait for history’s judgment and not today’s headlines.”
Asked by CBS’ Rita Braver why some former diplomats say Americans are disliked around the world, Rice said that’s “just not true.”
“I know what U.S. policy has achieved. And so I don’t know what diplomats you’re talking to, but look at the record,” she said.Rice said she wasn’t bothered by criticism about her or the administration’s polices, saying if a person in her business is not being criticized, “you’re not doing something right.”
“I’m here to make tough choices, and this president is here to make tough choices, and we have. And yes, I — there are some things that I would do very differently if I had it to do over again. You don’t have that luxury. You have to make the choices and take the positions that you do at the time,” she said.
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