Obama defies Republicans, names Rice to top security post

US President Barack Obama on Wednesday named Susan Rice  as his new national security advisor, defying Republican fury over her role in the Benghazi affair and calling her an "exemplary public servant." Rice, 48, currently US ambassador to the United Nations, will take over from Tom Donilon in July. Obama nominated Irish-born genocide expert and Pulitzer prize-winning author Samantha Power, 42, as the next envoy to the world body. The shake-up in Obama's national security team marks a swift rebound for Rice, who was forced to pull out of the running to be secretary of state, after being caught up in a row over the attack on the US mission in Benghazi. Republicans accused her of misleading Americans over the true nature of the attack in Libya, which killed four Americans, after she said on television it was a spontaneous assault rather than a planned terrorist operation. Obama vigorously defended her at the time, and it was an open secret in Washington that he would select Rice when Donilon, who has been in the job for three years, decided to retire this year. The president Wednesday lauded Rice as an "exemplary public servant" who is "passionate and pragmatic" and a champion for justice and human dignity. "Put simply, Susan exemplifies the finest tradition of American diplomacy and leadership," Obama said in a ceremony in the White House Rose Garden. Obama's staff shuffle again puts two women in the trio of top foreign policy jobs, alongside Secretary of State John Kerry, and confirms Obama's penchant from promoting within his tight political inner circle. It also elevates two people who have wrestled with the question of when the United States should intervene in foreign conflicts to protect civilians, just as Obama faces pressure to get more involved in the Syria crisis. Rice was part of the Clinton administration team that failed to respond to halt genocide in Rwanda in the 1990s. Power won the Pulitzer Prize for her book "The Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide" which focuses on Rwanda and other mass killings, including in Cambodia and Bosnia. Donilon was at the center of the decision to pull US troops out of Iraq, to withdraw combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of next year and the killing of Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in Pakistan. He is a key figure in China policy, masterminding Obama's diplomatic 'pivot' to Asia, and recently traveled to Beijing to prepare the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to California this week. "I would like to thank you for this rare opportunity to be outside and experience the natural light," quipped the workaholic Donilon at the ceremony, before going on to laud Obama as a leader of rare skill and grace. An uncharacteristically emotive Obama called him one of the greatest national security advisors ever. Rice, who served as an assistant secretary of state for Africa in the Clinton administration, has long been one of Obama's closest foreign policy aides, dating back to his 2008 campaign. She won plaudits in the White House for her work at the United Nations, lining up tough sanctions on Iran but also raising eyebrows with undiplomatic language. Rice, who reputedly has sharp elbows and can be blunt, told Obama she was humbled by the opportunity and that the administration still had much work to do to keep America safe for the final three-and-a-half years of his presidency. Rice does not need Senate confirmation to serve as national security advisor, the president's closest foreign policy aide, so any residual opposition from Republicans will not be a problem. Some Republicans however still raised concerns. "I really question the president's judgment in promoting someone who was complicit to misleading the American public," Senator Rand Paul told Fox News. Another critic, John McCain, said on Twitter that he did not agree with the appointment of Rice, but would work with her on important issues. Power formerly served Obama as a special assistant focusing on multilateral affairs and human rights. She will face a Senate confirmation that could be used by Republicans to hammer Obama on Syria policy and to renew the row over Benghazi. Power was previously best known outside foreign policy and academic circles for calling Hillary Clinton a "monster" during the 2008 White House race, a comment which led to her resignation from Obama's campaign.