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Politics : Sioux Nation -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Knighty Tin who wrote (14584)	4/26/2005 8:52:26 AM
From: SiouxPal	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 361358

Bolton's Record of Incompetence The White House claims concerns about John Bolton's conduct are merely stylistic. Late last week Vice President Cheney said, "f being occasionally tough and aggressive and abrasive were a problem, there are a lot of members of the United States Senate who wouldn't qualify." The fact is, Bolton's undiplomatic behavior has repeatedly jeopardized vital national security interests. Newsweek reported yesterday that a U.S.-British effort in 2003 to force Libya to surrender its nuclear program "succeeded only after British officials 'at the highest level' persuaded the White House to keep Bolton off the negotiating team." Bolton's unbending position nearly compromised the effort until the Bush administration "agreed to keep Bolton 'out of the loop.'" The Libya negotiations were one of "several occasions" when "America's closest ally in the war on terror, Britain, was irked by what U.S. and British sources say were efforts by Bolton to undermine promising diplomatic openings." BOLTON UNDERMINED IRANIAN NON-PROLIFERATION EFFORTS: The Libyan negotiations weren't the only time that Bolton nearly undermined America's diplomatic efforts. In November 2003, "British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, was complaining to Powell about John Bolton." According to Straw, Bolton "was making it impossible to reach allied agreement on Iran's nuclear program" by insisting on a hard-line position. An aide to then-Secretary of State Colin Powell was forced to interview experts in Bolton's own Nonproliferation Bureau to glean their actual recommendations and resolve the issue. According to the aide involved with the interviews, the terrified State Department experts were "adamant that we not let Bolton know we had talked to them." And don't forget, in July 2003, just before crucial six-nation talks with North Korea, Bolton so insulted the country that the State Department was forced to call him home. ANOTHER BOLTON VICTIM STEPS FORWARD: Bolton has made a career of bullying and intimidation, leaving a long trail of scared subordinates. The latest to step forward is Lynne D. Finney, who alleges that "Bolton mistreated her when they worked in the General Counsel's Office at the US Agency for International Development." In the early 1980s, "Bolton asked her [Finney] to persuade delegates from other countries to vote with the United States to weaken World Health Organization restrictions on marketing of infant formula in the developing world." Finney says she "refused because improper use of the formula can be deadly." According to Finney, Bolton ''shouted that Nestle was an important company and that he was giving me a direct order from President Reagan. He yelled that if I didn't obey him, he would fire me. I said I could not live with myself if even one baby died because of something I did.... He screamed that I was fired." RIGHT WING ATTACKS INDEPENDENCE: President Bush blames the opposition to Bolton on "politics." But concern about Bolton is bipartisan. Four Republicans and eight Democrats have all expressed their concerns, if not outright opposition, to the Bolton nomination. That hasn't stopped a right-wing group called Move America Forward from running ads attacking Sen. George Voinovich (R-OH) for asking for more time to consider the nomination. The ad script says Voinivich "shows up at the last minute and stabs the President and Republicans right in the back." Apparently, Voinovich is under the mistaken impression that he is representing the citizens of Ohio. NOVAK GROSSLY DISTORTS DODD'S VIEWS: In his column this morning, Robert Novak parrots the administration argument that opposition to Bolton is "personal." Apparently, he doesn't have much evidence to support his claim. Novak writes that on Tuesday, Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) "made the astounding statement that his opposition to Bolton 'has nothing to do with substantive disagreements,' only his personal characteristics." Novak grossly distorts Dodd's position to score political points. Dodd actually said his opposition "goes to the damage that Mr. Bolton, I think, has done to the integrity of U.S. intelligence by trying on five different occasions over the past 24 months to have two intelligence analysts removed from their jobs ... because these individuals wouldn't clear language that Mr. Bolton wanted to use that was not supported by available intelligence." In other words, it's not Bolton's personality that the problem, it's the impact of his conduct on the security of the United States. Novak goes on to imply that Dodd's opposition from Bolton is part of an insidious plot to cozy up to Fidel Castro. (Share your thoughts on Novak's column on ThinkProgress.org)