United Nations: Bolton's the wrong pick

Wednesday, April 27, 2005

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER EDITORIAL BOARD

President Bush's plan to appoint a U.N.-basher as ambassador to the international body has its intriguing aspects. Tough love can be part of a prescription for reform.

But Republican senators were right to ask for more time to look at the nomination of John Bolton as U.N. ambassador. There are too many questions now, and time will add more concerns.

The Senate should reject Bolton's nomination if Bush doesn't withdraw it first. There are ample signals that Bolton's temperament would lend itself more to diplomatic confrontation than the rebuilding of coalitions, alliances and international institutions that the country needs in the wake of its Iraq invasion.

The revelations that Bolton has always had moments of acting the office bully certainly pose no insurmountable bar to his holding a responsible position in government. As his supporters argue, government always has jerks -- in Congress, the White House and every agency -- whose ample intellect, vision and patriotic fervor far outweigh the handicap of their unpleasant personalities.

But that is a worrisome trait in a key diplomatic post. Worse, Bolton seems to have been particularly willing to turn nasty over intelligence assessments that he considered too optimistic about other countries' weapons of mass destruction. That portends particular trouble for any future U.S. efforts to use the United Nations more constructively. The U.N. weapons inspectors, not Bush administration hard-liners like Bolton, had the Iraqi situation right.

The president is right to seek U.N. reforms. His praise for Bolton's "distinguished career" is reasonable. But sending an ambassador known for his sharp criticisms of the United Nations was risky from the start. There has to be a better place for Bush to use Bolton, and a better choice for ambassador.


Should the Senate confirm President Bush's nominee, John Bolton, as ambassador to the United Nations?
20.8% Yes. Bolton's realism will be an asset	1.8% Yes. The president's nominee deserves the benefit of the doubt
41.4% No. The country needs someone who will work well with other nations	35.4% No. But what does it matter with Bush and Cheney running things?
0.6% Not sure or don't care
Total Votes: 543