Condoleezza Rice: 'We now have to talk about how to move forward' as a country

Former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Sunday was featured on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” The Alabama native touched on a wide range of topics during the lengthy interview, including civil unrest across the country, President Donald Trump and the need for high-quality broadband access for all Americans.

Face the Nation host Margaret Brennan began the interview by referencing an op-ed Rice recently wrote for The Washington Post.

“You’ve written that there seems to be something different about this moment. What do you think is different?” Brennan asked.

“Well, I think what’s different is that this, as I said recently, people are a little bit sick and tired of being sick and tired, to quote the great civil rights leader, Fannie Lou Hamer,” Rice responded. “And I think that is leading people of various backgrounds, different colors, different experiences to say how can we really make the outcome different this time?”

“And it’s leading people to look at questions about our criminal justice system, about the justice of our institutions,” she continued. “But more importantly, it’s looking — having us look in the mirror at questions about race. It’s a very, very deep and abiding wound in an America that was born with a birth defect of slavery. And I’m really hoping that this time, we’ll have really honest conversations, conversations that are not judgmental. Conversations that are deep but honest — conversations about what we’ve been through and who we want to be.”

Rice proceeded to advise that Americans should look inward — and forward — on the issue and not look to assign blame for what transpired in the past.

“We have a very painful history. Europeans and Africans came to this country together,” she said. “Africans came in chains. My DNA is 40% European. My great-great-grandfather was my great-grandmother’s slave owner. That’s a very hard truth. But it is the truth of the past.”

“We now have to talk about how to move forward,” Rice outlined. “And when I talk to people of different colors, particularly my white friends, my white colleagues, I don’t want it to be in the language of recrimination. I want to be in the language of ‘how do we move forward?’ I think we each have an individual responsibility. It’s a collective responsibility, yes, but it’s an individual responsibility to ask, ‘what am I going to do specifically? What am I going to do to help heal these wounds and to move our country forward?’ Because race is still very much a factor in everyday life in America.”

For Rice, she has found her personal answer of what to do in the field of education.

She noted that while “an education is not a shield against prejudice … it gives people a fighting chance.”

Rice also explained that the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed inequalities within America, especially related to education.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do around inequality. And I’ve just always believed that education is our most important intervention against the scourge of inequality, and particularly, when we look at race and poverty, which is a particularly tough witch’s brew,” she remarked.

Brennan then asked Rice to go into more detail about the policy issues the pandemic has highlighted.

“Well, one of the things that’s happened is that this crisis has exacerbated problems that were there already, and we now have to ask ourselves, are we just going to say, ‘well, my goodness, look at what we’ve seen,’ [or] are we really going to act?” Rice responded.

The former secretary of state under then-President George W. Bush emphasized that expanding high-quality internet access must be a top issue for the entire country, as well as a continued focus on workforce development for 21st century jobs.

“We know that in this crisis, if you can work from home, if you are capable of being on the Internet, then you can continue to work. You’re not unemployed. Knowledge workers are doing better,” Rice advised. “So let’s talk about higher skills levels for everybody. But I also think there’s something very specific we could do. Let’s say, ‘every American is going to have broadband. Every American is going to have access to a reliable Internet.’ And that means people in rural areas. That means people in schools that are not well-endowed. I’d love to see us have a national project about access to the Internet, access to broadband in the way that we’ve had access, for instance, to the highway at another time in our history.”

Brennan then transitioned into a flurry of questions about Rice’s thoughts on President Trump, first asking what Rice’s advice would be for the president at this time.

Rice’s comments were noticeably different than those made recently by her predecessor as secretary of state, General Colin Powell.

“I would ask the president to first and foremost speak in the language of unity, the language of empathy,” Rice said. “Not everyone is going to agree with any president, with this president, but you have to speak to every American, not just to those who might agree with you. And you have to speak about the deep wounds that we have and that we’re going to overcome them.”

“I’ve heard the president talk about the resilience of Americans. I’d love to hear more of that,” she added. “And I’m not advising the president. But, you know, unfortunately, Twitter and tweeting are not great ways for complex thoughts, for complex messages. When the president speaks, it needs to be from a place of thoughtfulness, from a place of having really honed the message so that it reaches all Americans.”

Rice noted, “And by the way, not just the president. I would love to hear this from our leaders in Congress on both sides of the aisle. I would love to hear from mayors and from governors and from others. Leaders at this particular point need to do everything that they can to overcome, not intensify our divisions.”

Rice subsequently addressed Trump’s tweet saying “when the looting starts, the shooting starts,” as well as the recent criticism of Trump by General Jim Mattis, who served as Trump’s first secretary of defense. She also discussed the Insurrection Act and the current American civil unrest in a global context.

Brennan closed the interview by asking Rice if she was supporting Trump in his reelection bid in November.

Rice answered, “As I’ve often said, when I’m ready to speak about American politics, I’ll come back to you. And you’ll be the first to know when I want to speak about American politics. Right now, what I want to speak to is my fellow Americans and to understand the deep divisions that we have, to understand what it is to be black. I know what it’s like to be met with a look of dismissiveness or the like. So I want to focus on that right now.”

“And I want to say one other thing,” she concluded. “You asked about the military earlier. Let’s remember, too, that our people in uniform also come from different backgrounds. They come from different races. They’re united in a common cause. But this is hard for them, too. And I know that their commanders are aware of the painful conversations that need to take place even within our military. But one great thing is when we unite for a common cause, as they often do, it helps us to overcome those differences.”

You can read the full interview transcript here via CBS News.

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