This morning’s Los Angeles Times reports that a “unanimous vote against John R. Bolton is likely in a key Senate panel, which could doom the nomination if a Republican joins them.”
From this morning’s Democracy Now! which covers the nomination in great detail, including newly released video of a Bolton speech 10 years ago:
[I’ll quote this actual program script in full. The transcripts of the interviews mentioned below are not up yet. You can watch video or listen to the show now. NOTE the Web site below.]
The Los Angeles Times is reporting [Susan’s Note: GREAT STORY: READ IT — SUBSCRIPTION, FREE] that every Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee plans to reject John Bolton’s nomination to be US ambassador to the United Nations. This would mark the first time that committee Democrats unanimously opposed a diplomatic selection by President Bush. It could also put Bush’s nomination in peril if any Republicans defected to vote against Bolton. Several groups opposed to Bolton have launched campaigns to urge Republican Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island to vote against his nomination. Chafee is the most moderate Republican on the Foreign Relations Committee.
Meanwhile, a group of former U.S. diplomats and other high level officials have called for the Senate to reject John Bolton’s nomination to become the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. 59 former diplomats and other officials have signed an open letter outlining their views to Senator Richard Lugar. Lugar is the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee which will hold hearings on Bolton’s nomination on April 7. Bolton has been one of the fiercest critics of the United Nations within the Bush administration. The letter to Senator Lugar states that Bolton “is the wrong man for this position” and cites Bolton’s insistence that the U.N. is valuable only when it directly serves the United States- as cause for concern. That view, they stated, would undermine negotiation efforts with other diplomats at the U.N. At the announcement of Bolton’s nomination on March 7th, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice described him as “a tough-minded diplomat” with “a proven track record of effective multilateralism.”
We are joined in the studio by one of the people who signed the letter to Senator Lugar, Spurgeon Keeny. We are also joined by Don Kraus who is the Executive Vice President of Citizens for Global Solutions. They have just released footage of John Bolton from more than 10 years ago where he was speaking at an event called the “Global Structures Convocation,” held on February 3, 1994 in New York.
- John Bolton, speaking in New York on Feb. 3, 1994 in New York.
- Spurgeon Keeny Jr., former deputy director of the U.S Arms Control and Disarmament agency under President Carter 1976-1981. He was one of the 59 who signed a letter to Senator Lugar urging the rejection of John Bolton as U.S Ambassador to the U.N.
- Don Kraus, Executive Vice President of Citizens for Global Solutions. The organization recently launched the website StopBolton.org.
… Then come the interviews, not transcribed yet, begin …
Again: You can watch video or listen to the show now.