Biden on Bolton

Just in case you might find yourself in a stalled elevator, or dinner party, with a right-wing defender of the Bolton nomination, you should read Senator Biden's statement on the floor of the Senate.

It's a catalog of the many reasons to vote against Bolton, and uses the testimony of Republicans before the committee to make each argument. When you sit down and go over it all at once, it's quite a list.

I also enjoyed the bit of historical perspective with which he began:

Mr. President, the job to which Mr. Bolton has been nominated is one of the most important ambassadorships that a President fills. In the past, it has often held cabinet rank.

Leading figures of their day have held the job - people such as Henry Cabot Lodge, Adlai Stevenson, George Bush, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Jeane Kirkpatrick, Richard Holbrooke, and Jack Danforth. Aside from the President and the Secretary of State, the UN Ambassador is the best-known face of American diplomacy.

It is a job that requires a person with diplomatic temperament, willing to listen to other points of view, and blessed with the power to persuade, such as the President's father, George H.W. Bush.

It is a job that requires a person of great credibility, such as Adlai Stevenson.

It is a job that requires a person who is not an ideologue - such as Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, a Democrat who served a Republican President.

And it is a job that requires a person who has the complete confidence of the President and the Secretary of State, such as Jeane Kirkpatrick.

Mr. Bolton is not that person.

He is no diplomat - as evidenced by his contempt for opposing views, and his unwillingness to listen.

His credibility is in grave doubt - as evidenced by his repeated efforts to distort facts to fit his pre-formed views.

He is an ideologue, a bright ideologue, but nonetheless an ideologue -- as evidenced by his long record both in and out of government.

And he lacks the trust and confidence of his superiors - as evidenced by the fact that the Secretary of State has felt the need to assure senators that Mr. Bolton will be "closely supervised." As one of our colleagues said, why would you send someone to the UN who needs to be "closely supervised?"

Why, indeed. And props to Biden for pointing out that for all the rhetoric, Bolton doesn't even have the unqualified support of the administration.

P.S. You can tell someone is a bad nominee when he even brings members of his own party to tears.

Via Crooks and Liars, here's the Windows Media video clip from MSNBC with Senator Voinovich. The Senator made the mistake of imagining the world his children and grandchildren would have to live in, if Bolton were confirmed.