Born November 14, 1954
Birmingham, Alabama

U.S. national security advisor

Condoleezza Rice was America's top advisor on the Soviet Union during the administration of President George Bush (1924–; served 1989–93; see entry), helping to write U.S. policy regarding the unification of Germany at the end of the Cold War in November 1990. The Cold War was an intense political and economic rivalry from 1945 to 1991 between the United States and the Soviet Union, falling just short of military conflict. For her part, Rice said she felt fortunate to have been given the chance to help shape America's response to these extraordinary events.

Rice was front and center at one of the most historic scenes in modern political history—the end of the Cold War era: In 1991, the Soviet Union broke apart and relations between the United States and the Soviets normalized....