Insiders with ties tothe Obama administration tell The Cablethat U.S. ambassador to the United Nations SusanRice has become the heir apparent to National Security Advisor Tom Donilon -- a post at the epicenterof foreign-policy decision making and arguably more influential than secretaryof state, a job for which she withdrew her candidacy last fall amid severepolitical pressure.
"It's definitelyhappening," a source who recently spoke with Rice told The Cable. "She is sure she iscoming and so too her husband and closest friends."
"Susan is a verylikely candidate to replace him whenever he would choose to leave," agreed Dennis Ross, a former special assistantto President Obama and counselor at the Washington Institute. "She is close tothe president, has the credentials, and has a breadth of experience."
Both sources said thetiming of succession was uncertain. "I don't believe Tom Donilon is about toleave but would be surprised if he were to remain for the whole second term," Rosssaid. "But in answer to your question, [Rice's appointment] is very logical."
Rice's candidacy forsecretary of state imploded in November after she recited talking points aboutthe Sept. 11 attack in Benghazi on five Sunday talk shows that turned out to beerroneous.
The question now iswhether Benghazi's return to the spotlight will affect her potentialappointment at a time when the White House is reeling from revelations about theIRS's scrutiny of conservative groups and the Justice Department's subpoena ofthe calling records of AP journalists.
For now, prominentRepublicans don't seem inclined to make a fuss.
In November, ArizonaSen. John McCain pledged to "do everything in my power to blockher from becoming secretary of state"; South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Grahamsaid, "I don't think she deserves to bepromoted"; and Tennessee Sen. Bob Corkersaid she'd make a better DNC chair: "I think most of us want someone who is more independentminded."
But now -- even asBenghazi fever reaches a crescendo following last week's dramatic"whistleblower" hearing and Wednesday's release of 100pages of Benghazi emails -- the GOP's desire to check her rise has seeminglyevaporated, and Republicans have few tools to prevent her appointment, whichwould not require Senate confirmation.
When asked if he wasconcerned about a future National Security Adviser Susan Rice, Corker, the rankingmember of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told The Cable he was sitting this one out.
"In the case ofnational security advisor," he said, "whomever serves in that position servesat the pleasure of the president. So it's totally his prerogative." When The Cable asked Graham and McCain thesame question, their spokesmen declined to comment.
In some ways, thedeflated interest in Rice is only natural. Though the testimony of State Department witnesses lastweek served to highlight the inaccuracy of Rice's talk-show appearances, new details of the editing process of hertalking points show her nowhere near the drafting process -- just as theadministration has long maintained.
Meanwhile, a more tantalizingGOP target has emerged in the form of HillaryClinton, the overwhelming favorite to assume the Democratic presidentialnomination in 2016. Democrats, Republicans and witnesses fixated on Clinton 32 times during discussionsin last week's hearing.
Rice spokeswoman Erin Pelton declined to comment forthis article. White House National Security Council Spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said, "We don't have anypersonnel announcements to make at this time, and Mr. Donilon has no plans todepart at this point." She added that Donilon is "fully engaged in managing ournational security agenda, from his recent trip to Moscow and major address onglobal energy, to planning for a trip to China in late May and more upcomingspeaking events."
The administrationhasn't shied away from heaping praise on Rice. Last week, at a gala for theJoint Center for Political and Economic Studies, Vice President Joe Bidentold the audience that the U.N. ambassador has"the absolute, total, complete confidence of the president," and that when shespeaks on issues of foreign policy, nobody doubts she's speaking for Obama.
Back in March, whencolleague Colum Lynch first reported whispers of Rice'scomeback, Ben Rhodes, deputynational security adviser for strategic communications, spoke glowingly ofRice's relationship with the president. "Susan always maintains close relationswith the president and his national security team, and that continues to be thecase," he said. "If anything, the way she handled the Benghazi situation -- andthen the withdrawal -- only enhanced her relations here, because she did sowith grace and good humor."
The president himselfhas gone out of his way to wink at an expanded role for Rice within hisadministration. "I have every confidence that Susan has limitless capability toserve our country now and in the years to come, and know that I will continueto rely on her as an advisor and friend," Obama said in a December statement.