The big problem Dr. Rice had this morning was that she wasn't Richard Clarke. His straightforward, honest, direct answers left a much better impression on the neutral viewer; perhaps her oleaginous, tone-deaf excuse-mongering (especially after Ben-Veniste and Kerrey made her seem more like a character in Glengarry Glen Ross than someone who has responsibility for preventing attacks on our nation's soil) might have worked three weeks ago, but now it just seems hollow. Dr. Rice represents everything the Bushies have come to symbolize: incompetence, ideology and sycophancy are valued, while results and achievement aren't. I predict she's going to find her true calling selling some choice property to retirees in Florida when this is all over.