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Metcalf
Articles:
THE BORKING OF BOLTON
By Geoff Metcalf
April 26, 2005
NewsWithViews.com
"Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys." - P.J. O'Rourke
The ongoing attempted �Borking� of John Bolton to be U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. personifies the most venial, petty, mean-spiritedness of the perpetual partisan acrimony. It highlights the very worst in congressional conduct and exacerbates an already adversarial environment resulting in an avoidable catch-22.
- If the White
House whimps out and allows the minority to bludgeon the President (again)
it will represent a defeat not just of a presidential nominee, but of
the President�s capacity to select HIS choices to serve his administration�and
forget about Social Security or Tax reform.
- If the Dems are
successful in thwarting the Bolton nomination, it will (for sure) embolden
them in the inevitable subsequent Supreme Court nominee battles.
- If the Dems continue
to drape themselves in the shabby mantle of hypocrisy (both over Bolton
AND the judicial nominee battle) they will lose far more than they could
ever gain in short term bragging rights (ask Tom Daschle).
- New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, has �tried� to counsel his party. He has cautioned the Democratic Party must reconnect with voters' core values if it hopes to regain congressional seats and perhaps even the presidency.
Richardson said (correctly) partisan fights in the nation's capital must be replaced with policy proposals that strike at the heart of voters' most pressing concerns.
Sadly, the usual suspects (Biden, Schumer, Pelosi, Reed, Leahy, Kerry, and the ubiquitous Ted Kennedy, continue to ignore facts which contradict their preconceived prejudice and �Jones� to get in the way of common sense.
Alas, common sense, reason, and courtesy are alien concepts to the �us� versus �them� partisan sycophants. John Kerry apparently wants to explore Bolton�s grammar school recess behavior and said, "Is the chairman saying it doesn't matter what we know about John Bolton?" The defeated myopic hypocrite actually said, "If you don't know some of the allegations that have come across the transom then you are voting in the blind. Maybe you want to vote in the blind."
Gosh-oh-gee-golly John, isn�t that EXACTLY what you wanted during your failed presidential race�what you STILL want? Here is the guy who STILL refuses to sign a Standard Form 180 to reveal full disclosure of HIS military record. And notwithstanding his claim to MSNBC�s Chris Matthews that he WOULD, he still hasn�t�and he won�t.
The documentation of the various Kerry discharges, if ever revealed, will terminate any political fiction he attempts to maintain.
Kerry recently ripped fellow democrat Mark Dayton after Dayton blew some nice smoke at Hillary. With �daggers in his eyes�, Kerry attacked Dayton on the floor of the Senate asking �What are you doing endorsing my 2008 presidential opponent?� Dayton says Kerry was serious as a heart attack but that, �as Winston Churchill once said, I�d rather be right than consistent.�
Pundits and academics are squeezing every drop of analysis out of the Bolton travails. Will the White House hang tough and continue to support their man? Will the Senate kill the nomination? Will Bolton survive and get confirmed? Will he withdraw to save the White House?
Experts with significant insights seem intent on agreeing to disagree about what will or won�t happen.
Sen. Gordon Smith spoke to the full senate to bemoan what he accurately called �death by a thousand cuts�.
What should have been a routine nomination has turned into a Rubicon for both the administration AND the nascent liberal critics.
Vice President Dick Cheney talks the talk, "If being occasionally tough and aggressive and abrasive were a problem," Cheney said, "a lot of members of the United States Senate wouldn't qualify." But will the White House �walk the walk�?
Much has been made of Sen. George Voinovich�s articulated misgivings about Bolton. Some conservative groups are even targeting Voinovich as a disloyal partisan traitor. However, despite the obvious character flaws of Voinovich (who previous to his epiphany hadn�t even bothered to show up for committee meetings) Chairman Richard Lugar is the guy who ought to be taken to the wood shed.
Lawyers never ask a witness questions they don�t know the answer to�or they are not supposed to do so. Committee chairs aren�t �supposed� to get around to VOTES until they have already counted noses and the result is a foregone conclusion. For Lugar to be �surprised� by Voinovich is an epic �aw sh*t!�
The pusillanimous Joe Biden lied to Lugar. Of course Biden has routinely demonstrated his propensity for duplicity, hypocrisy, and rancor.
Bolton�s greatest sin seems to be his vigorous support of his president�s foreign policy in an arena of gutless wayward Foggy Bottom careerists.
� 2005 Geoff Metcalf - All
Rights Reserved
"Geoff Metcalf is a nationally syndicated radio talk show host for TALK AMERICA and a veteran media performer. He has had an eclectic professional background covering a wide spectrum of radio, television, magazine, and newspapers. A former Green Beret and retired Army officer he is in great demand as a speaker. Visit Geoff's Web Site: www.geoffmetcalf.com. While you're at it - pick up a copy of Geoff's latest book! E-mail: geoff@geoffmetcalf.com
Kerry recently ripped fellow democrat Mark Dayton after Dayton blew some nice smoke at Hillary.
