Cojones

Stupid, yes, but also arrogant. Boy, is he arrogant.

WASHINGTON-- President Bush named Republican fundraiser Sam Fox as U.S. ambassador to Belgium on Wednesday, using a maneuver that allowed him to bypass Congress where Democrats had derailed Fox's nomination.

Democrats had denounced Fox for his 2004 donation to the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. The group's TV ads, which claimed that Sen. John Kerry exaggerated his military record in Vietnam, were viewed as a major factor in the Massachusetts Democrat losing the election.

Recognizing Fox did not have the votes to obtain Senate confirmation, Bush withdrew the nomination last month. On Wednesday, with Congress out of town for a spring break, the president used his power to make recess appointments to put Fox in the job without Senate confirmation.

This means Fox can remain ambassador until the end of the next session of Congress, effectively through the end of the Bush presidency.

Fox gave $50,000 to help smear a decorated veteran, sitting US Senator and candidate for President. His testimony to Senators before his nomination was pulled contained no sign of regret. He passed up a choice opportunity, since Senator Kerry sat on the committee. The White House withdrew his nomination less than an hour before the committee was about to vote on it.

Nominating Fox in the first place was essentially lifting a finger in the face of Democrats. Using a recess appointment to avoid having his nomination rejected by the Senate is even more insulting.

It's a stark reinforcement of the White House position: November's election is no reason to start treating Congress as a legitimate co-equal branch of government.

And for Kerry personally? I guess they decided to spare Dick the bother of going down to deliver the message personally, like he did for Leahy.

The remarkable thing is, Bush expects that he can pull stunts like this and get the Senate to respond to a veto on Iraq funding the way he wants them to. I think he may be surprised.