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When we heard that Gentlemen's Quarterly had named Condoleezza Rice as their number one pick of "The 50 Most Powerful People in D.C.," our initial reaction was the same as many others: "Really? The woman who couldn't get her op-ed placed in a supermarket pennysaver is the most powerful person in Washington?" But then we actually read the case GQ builds in support of their choice, and were frankly blown away. It's such a fiesta of dubious logic that buying into it doesn't so much require a "suspension" of disbelief as it does mandate that you imprison disbelief at Gitmo and then repeatedly flush whatever Bible disbelief holds dear down the toilet. An examination, then:

• "This wasn't an easy choice for #1, since there's no telling if Cheney will once again commandeer our foreign policy (as he did with Iraq) before leaving office. But Rice, the ultimate yes-woman as national-security adviser, has become a much needed check on the Office of the Vice President."

Uhm, what? "There's no telling?" "Once again commandeer?" Are they kidding? Is Dick Cheney's neoconservative fantasia not actually happening in Iraq at this very minute? Was it not reported on just today, about how "The Bush administration is preparing to declare that Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps is a foreign terrorist organization?" And Rice is the "much needed check" on all this? Geesh! With checks like hers, who needs balances?

• "Like Colin Powell, her predecessor at State, she now recognizes the pomposity of "with us or against us" and the value in talking to one's enemies. But the difference between her and Powell is: The president trusts her."

Okay...I'm going to have to stop you at "Like Colin Powell." I realize that what goes on inside the Beltway can get pretty nuanced, but, as a general rule, when you are asserting someone's power and influence, it's generally best not to base your assertion on anything even remotely resembling a comparison to Colin Powell. Especially if you recognize the flaw by adding your own caveat.

• Then there's this lengthy quote from, of all people, Mark Halperin.

Oh dear. Using Halperin as an essential part of your thesis' backbone is the journalistic equivalent of bringing a knife to a gunfight.

• "Overtures to Iran, Syria, North Korea... If it weren't for Condi, they would most likely never have happened."

Yes! And like magic there was never ever ever ever never ever a problem with any of those nations ever again! SUCH POWER!

• " Whatever hope we have of not going to war with Iran before the end of Bush's term rests largely with her."

Well, I guess we're doomed, then. (c.f. "The Bush administration is preparing to declare that Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps is a foreign terrorist organization?")

Related:
THE 50 MOST POWERFUL PEOPLE IN D.C. [GQ]

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