McCain Wants Committee Job With Influence on Foreign Affairs As President Obama mulls whether to nominate Susan E. Rice, the United Nations ambassador, to replace Hillary Rodham Clinton as secretary of state, one of Ms. Rice's biggest critics, Senator John McCain of Arizona, said he would seek a seat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Mr. McCain, who would remain on the Armed Services Committee, craves more involvement on foreign policy and national security issues. Should his wish be fulfilled, Mr. McCain's biggest impact could be during the confirmation hearings for the nominee for secretary of state. If that were Ms. Rice, Mr. McCain would almost certainly aggressively grill her on her qualifications for the job. Mr. McCain has repeatedly criticized Ms. Rice for the account she gave in television interviews of the terrorist attack in Libya, in which Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans were killed. He has boldly stated that Ms. Rice is "not qualified" for the job and repeatedly beat the drum against her nomination on political talk shows and in news conferences. "Senator McCain has expressed interest in joining the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, but no final decisions on committee assignments have been made," said Brian Rogers, a spokesman for Mr. McCain. The chairman of the committee, Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, is a potential nominee himself for secretary of state, but would otherwise lead the hearings. The White House is bracing for a potentially difficult process on the Hill, as more and more Republicans express reservations about the ability of Ms. Rice to secure the votes needed for conformation. If she is nominated, the White House will put together a team, led by a political operative, as it did for Mrs. Clinton (a former senator who knew her way around), to help with the confirmation process.