THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Volume VII, Issue # 182, August 20, 2005
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Government Committed to & Acting in Accord with Conservative Principles
Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity
JOHN BOLTON FINALLY HEADED TO THE UN
By Jon Kyle
PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH'S EXERCISE OF HIS CONSTITUTIONAL POWER TO MAKE RECESS APPOINTMENTS IN ORDER TO
CIRCUMVENT THE SENATE FILIBUSTER OF THE PRESIDENT'S NOMINATION OF JOHN BOLTON FOR APPOINTMENT AS UNITED
STATES AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED NATIONS: GETTING AROUND THE SENATE DEMOCRATS' BLATANTLY PARTISAN
USE & ABUSE OF THE FILIBUSTER, DELAYING & OBSTRUCTING THE SENATE CONFIRMATION PROCESS IN AN EFFORT TO WEAKEN
THE REPUBLICAN PARTY & THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION, AS WELL AS PREVENT APPOINTMENT OF THE TYPE OF SPOKESMAN &
REPRESENTATIVE THE U.S.A. NEEDS AT THE UNITED NATIONS
FULL STORY:
On August 1, 2005, President George W. Bush exercised his constitutional authority to designate a major public official, without
U.S. Senate approval, during a time period when the Congress was not in session. The President used this "recess appointment"
to finally name John Bolton as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, after nearly six months of delay, obstruction, and outright
harassment of Bolton by some Senate Democrats.
No document was too obscure, no past incident too minor, for a small group of senators who simply disliked Bolton to filibuster
his nomination, preventing an up-or-down Senate vote that all sides agree he would have won handily.
Filibustering a presidential nomination of a person for appointment as a major federal officer is within the power of any group of
at least forty senators; but it is a power that should be used sparingly, lest presidents come to see Senate "advice and consent"
as a dead-end for their nominees, resulting in many more recess appointments. The irony is that, in forcing President Bush to fill
America's seat at the United Nations in this way, the Democrats actually marginalized the role and authority of the Senate to
consider and then confirm or reject the appointment of a nominee of the President. The Democratic senators' endless requests for
classified documents that even Clinton administration veterans conceded should remain confidential quickly became a transparent
ploy that made it hard to take seriously the senators' concerns that Bolton was too blunt and undiplomatic. It is true he does not
suffer fools gladly and is more than willing to administer "tough love"when necessary, but it is just those qualities that President
Bush thought would be useful at the United Nations.
Rampant anti-Americanism, impotence in the face of genocide in Africa, and a culture of corruption among its senior leadership
have battered the UN's image and credibility. Now, like Jeane Kirkpatrick and Daniel Patrick Moynihan before him, Bolton is in a
position to press for reforms long resisted by the UN bureaucracy, and help establish a clarity of purpose for the organization's
unique role.
Moynihan and Kirkpatrick, both Democrats serving in Republican administrations, brought a vigorous defense of U.S. policy,
freedom and constitutional democracy to the UN, which, in the 1970s and 1980s, was dominated by Leftist Third World
dictatorships and was rife with Cold-War America bashing. As Peter Beinart of the New Republic has put it,
"Unlike his predecessors, who had listened politely while America was defamed,
Moynihan denounced the tin-pot dictatorships running wild at the United Nations."
Moynihan, the future Senator from New York, was also one of the first to observe that Soviet Communism would collapse under
the weight of its own contradictions, hardly a diplomatic thing to say. When Kirkpatrick took the job of Ambassador in 1981, the
Soviets had recently invaded Afghanistan, and the 444 day national humiliation of the Iranian hostage crisis was a fresh memory.
Kirkpatrick vigorously denounced America's critics, responding to their lectures about American and Western "imperialism" with
lectures of her own, on freedom and constitutional democracy.
Bolton, whose diplomatic skills were given short shrift in the heat of his Senate confirmation process, already has an impressive
resume as an advocate for peace and freedom, with a proven record of preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction and
prodding the United Nations to repeal its odious Zionism-equals-racism resolution. He is serious about the war on terror, cleaning
up corruption at the UN, and, like most Americans, doesn't appreciate being pushed around by nations that are not constitutional
democracies, do not respect human rights, and are not helpful in combating violent extremism.
To me, that sounds like exactly the kind of person we want representing the United States of America at the United Nations.
Somebody has to stand up for America! How about the U.S. Ambassador to the UN?
LINKS TO RELATED TOPICS:
The United Nations & Its Agencies
American Government & the U.S. Congress
American Government & the U.S. Presidency
American Politics & Political Competition
Jon Kyle is a Republican member of the U.S. Senate, elected from and representing the State of Arizona.
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