My colleague and friend Robert Wright has an outstanding op-ed in the New York Times today that should remind everyone that the real reason for opposing John Bolton is that he has Neanderthal policy positions when it comes to dealing with the country’s largest national security problems.
Credit: Dan Wasserman, Boston Globe, 26 April 2005 — Steve Clemons
Strangely enough, David Frum has written an article in Canada’s Financial Post on John Bolton with which I agree about 90%. Here is how the first bit runs: On Friday, the battle over John Bolton’s nomination as U.S.
John Bolton seems to have inflated virtually every threat into which his office came into contact. I take that back. He seems to have underestimated the threat of potential rogue nuclear materials in Russia as Senators Pete Domenici (R-NM) and Peter Fitzgerald (R-IL) questioned his delinquency on that front several years ago.
Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice spoke in Crawford, Texas today and encouraged the Senate to move forward on the Bolton nomination, suggesting that State had been extremely compliant in providing the material the Senate had requested on John Bolton. This is not true.
Senator Chafee committed to a more vigorous and aggressive investigation of all aspects of John Bolton’s background and behavior, and yet in the last several days, there is no evidence that Chafee has done anything to move from his passive stance on Bolton.
Anyone who reads my blog will know that I’m not very good at humor. I attended an interesting meeting today and met Duncan Black who publishes one of the biggest-reach blogs, Eschaton, and noted that when people read his stuff, they get great one-liners.
My problems with John Bolton are about serious “loose cannon” behavior in the realm of national security and foreign policy — but I have to admit that what has popularized John Bolton as a household name (well. . .almost) are questions about his treatment of people in the workplace.
Linda Chavez, if betting now, said she didn’t think Bolton was going to make it through confirmation. This from a recent AFP report: Linda Chavez, a former official in the Ronald Reagan and elder George Bush administrations, was even more pessimistic.
Bill Richardson made some news today suggesting that John Bolton might just squeak through — but it seems that his comments were of the wagering sort, on how he saw the very close odds, not on the substance of the nomination.
