By Jed Babbin on 4.11.05 @ 12:07AM
Will Hagel UNravel the Bolton nomination?
At half past nine this morning, the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee will meet to begin considering the nomination of Big Bad
John Bolton to be our next ambassador to the United Nations. The
mere thought of Bolton being our UN ambassador has driven the
Mooron Dems into a frothing rage. They can't stand the thought of
an ambassador to the UN who isn't a shill for Kofi and the rest of
the Turtle Bay crime family.
UNconvinced? Just look at the New York Times'
condemnation of Bolton. Its opposition editorial of April 8 said
that Bolton was unqualified for the job because, "at a minimum, the
United States representative to the United Nations should be a
person who believes it is a good idea." UNsurprisingly, this is the
principal argument the "Citizens for Global Solutions" organization
makes in its anti-Bolton "briefing book" published on its "Stop
Bolton" website. The CGS -- actually the old one-world
government whackos operating under a new name -- is, naturally,
more crafty and dishonest about it than the Times.
Last week, on Greg Garrison's radio show, I interviewed Mort
Halperin (he of Pentagon Papers infamy, now an employee of George
Soros), who is leading the hard left's campaign against. He said
that President Bush has decided to support the UN and work with
Kofi Annan, so Bolton can't be the ambassador because he opposes
Bush's policy. Huh? Mr. Bush picked Bolton precisely because he is
a severe critic of the UN, having said things such as, "There's no
such thing as the United Nations. If the UN building in
New York lost ten storeys, it wouldn't make a bit of difference."
The CGS "briefing book" says, "Part of the ambassador's job is to
champion the UN to those skeptics and bring them on board." In
other words, our UN ambassador should be representing the UN's
interests, not America's. Sorry, boys. Them days is gone, at least
until you can get Nurse Ratched elected.
Set aside the foundational truth: that whoever is our next
ambassador -- be it John Bolton, John Kerry or Jerry Seinfeld --
the UN won't really change. Kofi Annan, having overseen the
downfall of the organization, and hearing Bolton's approaching
footsteps, is making a half-hearted effort to create some
credibility for the UN. Annan pronounced that the Human Rights
Council -- famously dominated by such human rights stalwarts as
Saudi Arabia, China and Sudan -- might be better were it comprised
of nations that don't impose slavery and totalitarianism on their
citizens. That proposed mini-reform was quickly quashed by China, a
veto-holding member of the Security Council. So will all others
that are aimed at correcting the moral, intellectual and financial
corruption of the UN. But it is precisely because the UN is broken
and can't be fixed that we can't afford to see the Bolton
nomination fail.
UN skeptic John Bolton can, as ambassador, do what hasn't been
done since Jeane Kirkpatrick represented us to the Mad Hatter's Tea
Party on East 46th Street. He can expose the failures of the UN to
the harsh light of publicity. When Amb. Kirkpatrick led America out
of UNESCO -- the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural
organization which was so laughably corrupt its chieftain, one
Amadar M'Bow, built a Paris penthouse for himself with UN funds --
she made it far less comfortable and profitable for the UN rabble.
Mr. Bolton can do the same on a much broader scale. By forcefully
advocating the principles of representative democracy, he can
expose its opponents, be they French EUnuchs, Arabs, Russians or
Chinese.
Imagine, for a moment, a U.S. ambassador who is not captive to
the UN's agenda. He could introduce Security Council resolutions to
define terrorism in accordance with the existing Geneva Conventions
and to remove the diplomatic immunity from prosecution that
protects former Oil-for-Food-for-Bribes-for-Weapons program head
Benon Sevan. He could introduce others to stop the funding of UN
"peacekeeping" operations whose operatives harbor terrorists or
rape young Congolese girls and to remove French as one of the
official languages of the UN debates. None of them would pass, of
course, but they would all force the members of the UN to spend the
time and effort to defeat them usually reserved for bashing America
and obstructing its international goals. And Bolton could, with an
uncharacteristically cheerful smile, veto everything else.
Everything.
If the Bolton nomination makes it to the Senate floor, he will
be confirmed. But because the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
has too many wobblies and RINOs, confirmation remains a big "if."
That's why the hardest-core lefties are working feverishly on
Lincoln Chafee (RINO-Rhode Island) and the ever-wobbly Chuck Hagel
of Nebraska. Committee Chairman Dick Lugar of Indiana isn't a tower
of strength either. If the vote on Bolton fails in committee, it is
possible that Lugar could try to bring the nomination to the floor
with a negative vote, but that would face a certain filibuster.
Would Bill Frist risk the nuclear option to save Bolton? We may
find out.
Hagel will be the determinative vote on Bolton. If he votes in
favor, Lugar will be able to report the nomination on a straight
party-line vote. (Not counting Chafee, a UN-ophile, who is a lost
cause and should be as ignored as Canada's PM, Paul Martin.) Hagel,
who aspires to the 2008 presidential nomination, is the subject of
the Soros organizations' television ad campaign against Bolton.
Countering this, Hagel should hear a simple but forceful message
from the President and every other conservative. If you don't back
Bolton, your presidential ambitions will be opposed by every one of
us with as much money, as many votes, and as much public scorn as
we can muster. Should the Bolton vote be a -- shudder -- litmus
test for Republican presidential aspirants? Yes, and there will be
many more between now and 2008.
TAS contributing editor Jed Babbin is the author
of Inside the Asylum: Why the UN and Old Europe Are
Worse Than You Think (Regnery, 2004).
topics:
Education, Television, Books, Iran, Russia, United Nations, Oil
