http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/03/AR2006110301427_pf.htmlRice Bucks Tradition With Pre-Election Appearances
By Glenn Kessler
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, November 4, 2006; A03
It was an unusual question for a secretary of state.
"Did you dress up as a liberal" for Halloween, conservative commentator Laura Ingraham asked on her radio show yesterday. "No, no, no," Condoleezza Rice replied. "I didn't dress up as anything."
Two weeks before crucial midterm elections that could tip the balance of power in Congress, Rice has been on a media blitz that appears aimed mainly at conservative media outlets, particularly radio talk shows. Secretary of state is traditionally a nonpartisan position, and Rice's media itinerary differs sharply from the practice of her predecessors during election campaigns, according to State Department records.
Rice has given nine interviews on radio, starting with three appearances on Oct. 24 during "Radio Day," when 42 radio hosts, most of them conservatives, were invited to the White House to spread the administration's message to President Bush's political base.
In the past two days, Rice has appeared on four radio shows, including that of Ingraham, a best-selling author for her books that attack liberal "elites"; Bill Cunningham, a Cincinnati conservative; and Glenn Beck, another conservative, who appears on nearly 200 stations.