Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid described Republican opposition to Rice's possible nomination as "shameful."
"Ambassador Rice is eminently qualified to serve as Secretary of State and she could have been confirmed by the Senate. The politically motivated attacks on her character from some of my Republican colleagues were shameful. Their behavior was a disgrace to the Senate's tradition of bipartisan cooperation on national security issues and beneath the stature of senators with otherwise distinguished records on national security."
Someone stated her closed-door meetings "really hurt her," one knowledgeable Democratic source said. "She probably underestimated the club."