Closin' the Windows and Bolton the Door

Last year President Bush nominated John Bolton to the ambassadorship of the United Nations. Congress refused to approve the nomination so the president "temporarily" appointed him to the post. Bolton's nomimnation is coming up again, so I thought it appropriate to look back at a series of letters I wrote to the L. A. Times during July and August of last year.

Letter #1
Everyone deserves a second chance, don’t you think, especially a patriot like John Bolton. His last position, Under Secretary of State in charge of international non-proliferation of nuclear arms, was a tough one, complicated and complex. Admittedly, that didn't go too well - nuclear arms proliferated like rabbits - but he worked real hard and the president seems to likes him a lot.

I think this Ambassadorship is an ideal, second-chance position. How much damage could he do anyway? I know some people say he's a loose canon, but Condoleeza Rice says she can control him, and after all, isn’t that what you want in an ambassador to the United Nations, someone who needs to be controlled by the Secretary of State.

I think we should get behind the president on this one.

Letter #2
John Bolton’s pledge to honor the institution of the United Nations and work closely with its ambassadors is about as credible as movie ads. You know the ones I mean: “Best action film of the year,” or, “Best comedy since ‘Tootsie’.” That’s pretty much how I see John Bolton – Best diplomat Bush could find!

Letter #3
The shameful appointment of John Bolton as U.N. ambassador is an arrogant act of dictatorship. Using classic political bullying tactics, the president made his announcement at a press conference, labeled all opposition to the appointment as “a handful of partisan senators,” and left the room without taking a single question.

Clearly the law that allows a president to appoint a diplomat without congressional approval was designed as an emergency, stop-gap tool for use when Congress was out of session. Bush, however, has used this loophole as a political convenience, as a clever tool to side-step Congres and the democratic process.

Do you think dictatorship is impossible in America? Many of the world’s worst dictators came to power without firing a shot. They were legally elected by an unsuspecting public after playing on national pride and promising peace and prosperity.

Great political change is rarely perceived as an earthquake – everyday calm followed by sudden chaos – it is more like an unhappy marriage, one that begins in love and trust and dissolves slowly, almost unnoticeably, one step at a time. The appointment of John Bolton is a big step.


A foot on either side.

1 XCZR