Bush Picks Critic of U.N. to Serve as Ambassador to It

[kpih]

Originally Posted by Arex

This'll be a good opportunity to see whether common sense and logic can overcome party affiliation. I doubt it, but I'd love to be proven wrong.

I wish I still have faith...

[hooligan]

Originally Posted by kpih

I wish I still have faith...

Republicans voting against another Republican? That'll happen when Delay gets censured due to ethics violations.

[Arex]

^-- It all goes back to the voters. If the voters continue to tolerate (or remain ignorant of) the kind of crap that's been pulled these last four years, there's no incentive for the politicians to get their acts together. I can't imagine any reasonable person thinking that this guy's appointment would be a good thing given everything that's being said about him. Yet, I assume those wanting to push his nomination through would not be so quick to act if they believed there would be some kind of voter backlash for making irrational decisions. Thus, his nomination/confirmation will simply reinforce my belief that the current Republican political might is largely built upon the ignorance/apathy of American voters.

But speaking of DeLay, stories like this give me hope that the Republican party isn't comprised of a bunch of mindless zombies who refuse to acknowledge the difference between right and wrong. (Link is to a CNN story about dissent in the ranks regarding DeLay)

RX

[kpih]

Originally Posted by Arex

^-- It all goes back to the voters. If the voters continue to tolerate (or remain ignorant of) the kind of crap that's been pulled these last four years, there's no incentive for the politicians to get their acts together.

Agree.

[Banana]

The majority of Americans or people in general are retards.

[kpih]

GOP Lawmaker May Vote Against U.N. Nominee

Sunday April 17, 2005 10:31 PM


AP Photo NY114

By SIOBHAN McDONOUGH

Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - A top Senate Republican raised the possibility Sunday that he might vote against President Bush's nominee to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations if more accusations surface about John Bolton's alleged harassment of analysts who disagreed with his views

With a Senate Foreign Relations Committee vote expected Tuesday, Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska was asked whether he would endorse Bolton. ``At this point, I will ... but I have been troubled with more and more allegations, revelations, coming about his style, his method of operation,'' said Hagel, the committee's No. 2 Republican.

``We need a uniter,'' he told CNN's ``Late Edition.'' ``We need a builder. We need someone who will reach out to our friends and our allies at the United Nations.''

Bolton, who is now undersecretary of state, has been a vocal U.N. critic and rankled some lawmakers with his tough talk on foreign policy.

Democrats, who have accused Bolton of bullying subordinates, requested last week that a vote be delayed for further questioning of Bolton in writing and while they sought testimony by three U.S. officials on what lawmakers said were Bolton's efforts to remove dissenting analysts from their jobs.

Hagel said he was disturbed to learn of allegations that Bolton tried to intimidate an analyst - a State Department employee - who is now a temporary staffer in the senator's office.

Rexon Ryu did not initially tell Hagel about his encounter with Bolton until Ryu discovered the matter would become public.

Bolton and Ryu reportedly clashed in 2003 when Ryu allegedly failed to provide a document for Bolton's chief of staff. Bolton, allegedly accused Ryu of hiding information.

Hagel deemed the allegations ``a disturbing pattern of things that have come out about Bolton's management style, this intimidation. We cannot have that at the United Nations. That should not be anywhere in our government.''

Sen. Richard Lugar, chairman of the committee, said he hopes to confirm Bolton on Tuesday, ending ``not a pleasant set of hearings'' on the contentious nominee.

The president ``thinks Bolton is an agent of reform, has really the skills and the savvy and what have you, and maybe the combative nature, to bring about change,'' Lugar, R-Ind., told ``Fox News Sunday.''

But the committee's top Democrat said Bolton, a critic of the world body in the past, lacks credibility for the job, which could undermine U.S. influence.

``John Bolton's strong and in some areas very respected ideological view of foreign policy intelligence are admirable, but they're not admirable for someone running a Cabinet-level position, one of the largest embassies in the world, which is essentially, the embassy of the United States at the U.N.,'' Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del. said.

``What happens when our ambassador has to stand up and make the case on intelligence relating to Iraq and North Korea?'' Biden added. ``Do you think John Bolton is going to be believed? ... I think it matters a great deal whether or not they have credibility as we move into these most dangerous moments with Korea and with Iran.''

Last week, the second-ranking senator of the minority Democratic Party said he expected Bolton to be confirmed despite Democrat efforts to derail Bush's choice for U.N. ambassador.

``I think ultimately he will be confirmed, but I hope there will be a spirited debate before that happens,'' Sen. Dick Durbin, of Illinois, said.

[fresh22]

Does anyone else besides me think the UN is just a face organization? Where is the power to enforce it's decisions?

C'mon, all they can do is twiddle their thumbs and make "recommendations." They can't do shit to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons or stop atrocities from happening much less anything else. Sanctions? Haha...what a joke.

They have no standing army, only getting what little member states contribute. That alone cripples them more than anything.

What a bureaucratic mess.

[Tao]

Originally Posted by fresh22

Does anyone else besides me think the UN is just a face organization? Where is the power to enforce it's decisions?

C'mon, all they can do is twiddle their thumbs and make "recommendations." They can't do shit to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons or stop atrocities from happening much less anything else. Sanctions? Haha...what a joke.

They have no standing army, only getting what little member states contribute. That alone cripples them more than anything.

What a bureaucratic mess.

i agree. the un is completly a joke now. I mean sure the security council does some stuff, but overall the un hasn't done what it's really good for...which is promote dialogue and resolve conflicts verbally between nations. I mean, Anan's an ok leader, but he's not very inspiring or charasmatic. He doesn't draw the people of the world to really care about the conflicts around the globe. As a result the un now, only provides aid and peace keeping troops to regions that are already pretty far gone. The un acts more as a band-aid than a real remedy. The best they can do now is keep status-quo.

[Faithless]

Republican deals blow to Bolton nomination

ISN SECURITY WATCH (20/04/05) - A US Senate panel on Tuesday delayed a vote on nominee John Bolton for the post of US ambassador to the UN, after Democrats voiced fresh concerns about Bolton’s character and a Republican said he opposed the vote.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee, with 10 Republicans and only eight Democrats, was expected to approve Bolton’s nomination, and indeed, most observers thought it was a done deal.

Republican Senator George Voinovich of Ohio surprised his colleagues on the committee by saying he had heard enough to know that he did not “feel comfortable about voting for Mr Bolton today”.

Voinovich said he had changed his mind after testimony from Democratic Senator Christopher Dodd from Connecticut.

“The passion on the other side on this, I don’t this, is political,” news agencies quoted Bolton as saying. “I think they raised some legitimate issues. I think we ought to find out what they are, I think we ought to get the information, get a chance to have [the allegations] rebutted.”

Picking up Voinovich’s lead, two other Republican senators also sought to delay the vote.

Democrats have accused Bolton of bullying intelligence analysts into changing their reports to reflect his assessment that “the United States believes that Cuba has a developmental offensive biological warfare program and is providing assistance to other rogue state programs”.

The committee also charged that Bolton had used his position as a senior State Department official to obtain details about intercepted communications involving other US officials monitored by the NSA.

Democrats have criticized Bolton for his open dislike for the UN organization, where he would be representing the US if his nomination were approved. Democrats have equated sending Bolton to represent the US at the UN to “sending a bull into a china shop”.

Last week, a senator played a videotape of a 1994 speech in which Bolton said: “There is no United Nations. There is an international community that occasionally can be led by the only real power left in the world - that’s the United States - when it suits our interests and when we can get others to go along.”

The administration of George Bush is standing firm behind Bolton’s nomination, despite the controversy.

[Faithless]

Colin Powell. The Power-meister. Making the waves.

Powell playing quiet role in Bolton fight

GOP senators sought his views on U.N. nominee
By Jim VandeHei and Robin Wright
Updated: 11:22 p.m. ET April 21, 2005

Former secretary of state Colin L. Powell is emerging as a behind-the-scenes player in the battle over John R. Bolton's nomination as ambassador to the United Nations, privately telling at least two key Republican lawmaker that Bolton is a smart but very problematic government official, according to Republican sources.

Powell spoke in recent days with Sens. Lincoln D. Chafee (R.I.) and Chuck Hagel (Neb.), two of three GOP senators on the Foreign Relations Committee who have raised concerns about Bolton's confirmation, the sources said. Powell did not advise the senators to oppose Bolton, but offered a frank assessment of the nominee as a man who was challenging to work with on personnel and policy matters, according to two people familiar with the conversations.

"General Powell has returned calls from senators who wanted to discuss specific questions that have been raised," said Margaret Cifrino, a Powell spokeswoman. "He has not reached out to senators," and considers the discussions private.

A spokesman for Chafee confirmed that at least two conversations took place. Bolton served under Powell as his undersecretary of state for arms control, and the two were known to have serious clashes.

Powell's tenure as secretary of state was often marked by friction with the White House on a range of foreign policy issues, disagreements that both sides worked to keep from surfacing. It is not Powell's style to weigh in strongly against a former colleague, but rather to direct people to what he sees as flaws and potential problems, former associates say. Powell's views are highly influential with many Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill.

Those who know Powell best said two recent events provide insight into his thinking. Powell did not sign a letter from seven other former U.S. secretaries of state or defense supporting Bolton, and his former chief of staff, Lawrence B. Wilkerson, recently told the New York Times that Bolton would be an "abysmal ambassador."

"On two occasions, he has let it be known that the Bolton nomination is a bad one, to put it mildly," a Democratic congressional aide said. "It would be great to have Powell on the record speaking for himself, but he's unlikely to do it."

With a final committee vote delayed until next month, Chafee is studying Bolton's record and withholding judgment, his spokesman said. Chafee told reporters Wednesday he is "much less likely" to support Bolton because of questions about his credibility.
...

[hooligan]

Wouldn't it be great if Bolton during his confirmation hearings flipped out, grabbed a sword and started killing people?

[Grasshopper]

Colin Powell. The Power-meister. Making the waves.

I missed that. When did Powell become a "power-meister".

When he was Sec. of State he was Cheney/Rumsfeld's bitch.

Bush got tired of him and gave that job to his black nurse Condi.

Wouldn't it be great if Bolton during his confirmation hearings flipped out, grabbed a sword and started killing people?

I'm waiting for him to do that AFTER his confirmation.

When he's at the UN Security Council within blade length of Kofi, and the guys from France, North Korea, Iran, Cuba and some others.

[Martino]

Originally Posted by Grasshopper

When he's at the UN Security Council within blade length of Kofi, and the guys from France, North Korea, Iran, Cuba and some others.

You lump together France with North Korea, Iran and Cuba? You must be American ..

[Grasshopper]

Originally Posted by Martino

You lump together France with North Korea, Iran and Cuba? You must be American ..

Yes........an American just kidding around.

I don't really want him using a sword. More like a big pillow filled with chicken feathers.

[hooligan]

Originally Posted by Grasshopper

Yes........an American just kidding around.

I don't really want him using a sword. More like a big pillow filled with chicken feathers.

No, I actually like the claymore idea, with his face painted Braveheart-style, screaming like a Scotsman.