Condoleezza Rice.

Condoleezza Rice was born on November 14, 1954 in Birmingham, Alabama. She has often said that to get ahead she had to be "twice as good" and her childhood chiseled her strong determination and self-respect. Her parents taught her that education provided armor against segregation and prejudice. As the civil rights movement reached her town, where racism ran out of control, Ms. Rice says she felt insulted from the confusion all around her. Ms. Rice worked her …

…Al Gore attacked the Texas governor's for his supposed lack of foreign-policy capability during an April speech. Condoleezza Rice is the first woman to occupy the key post of national security advisor. She is the most academic member of the Bush foreign affairs team and - because of her gender, background and youth - one of the most unique. Also, she is personally close to Mr. Bush, barely leaving his side during the 2000 presidential election.