More Bad News... (Please Read this through...)

----- Original Message -----

From: "Dale Bryan" <dale.bryan@tufts.edu>

To: <peace@csf.colorado.edu>; <psamemb-l@earlham.edu>

Sent: Tuesday, March 27, 2001 8:06 PM

Subject: [Fwd: [disarmnetma] URGENT - message to Kerry re: Bolton]

BACKGROUND: President Bush has nominated John R. Bolton to be Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee has scheduled his nomination hearing for Thursday, March 29 at 10:30 am in 419 Dirksen Senate Office Building.

The Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security Affairs is the number three position in the State Department. The Under Secretary reports directly to the secretary of state, and in the absence of the Secretary and Deputy Secretary serves as Acting Secretary of State. Other major responsibilities include directing and coordinating arms control policy, nonproliferation policy, foreign assistance programs, and military assistance programs for the State Department. The Under Secretary negotiates and implements arms control agreements with foreign countries. These expansive responsibilities engulf an enormous range of substantive international issues from chemical, biological and nuclear weapons oversight to providing strategic economic and military assistance abroad.

Bolton has repeatedly taken positions extremely hostile to international institutions and arms control agreements. He is a leading opponent of the International Criminal Court. He has published op-eds refuting the United States' legal obligation pay assessments to international organizations. He opposses the Comprehensive Test Ban treaty and many other arms control agreements. Below is a few relevant quotes.

"The Secretariate building in New York has 38 stories. If it lost ten stories, it wouldn't make a bit of difference."

"The Senate vote on the CTBT actually marks the beginning of a new realism on the issue of weapons of mass destruction and their global proliferation. Although undoubtedly a stinging and perhaps crippling humiliation for the Clinton administration, the Senate vote is also an unmistakable signal that America rejects the illusionary protections of unenforceable treaties."
The Jerusalem Post on October 18, 1999

"Moreover, many Republicans in Congress - and perhaps a majority - not only do not care about losing the General Assembly vote but actually see it as a "make my day" outcome. Indeed, once the vote is lost, and the adverse consequences predicted by the U.N.'s supporters begin to occur, this will simply provide further evidence to many why nothing more should be paid to the U.N. system.(Moreover, even if the General Assembly vote is lost, we retain our Security Council seat and veto, which are far more important.)"
Washington Times, October 24, 1998

"Support for the International Criminal Court concept is based largely on emotional appeals to an abstract ideal of an international judicial system unsupported by any meaningful evidence and running contrary to sound principles of international crisis resolution."

House International Relations Committee, July 7, 2000

Bolton has consistently taken the position that international collective interest does not even exist. "There is no such thing as the United Nations," he told the Global Structures Convocation. "There is an international community, that occasionally can be led by the only real power left in the world and that is the United States when it suits our interest and when we can get others to go along."

Bolton has also been connected with a long list of unethical activity. He has raised money for political campaigns by methods that were later shown to be unethical. Bolton was repeatedly connected with unethical activity during his previous service in the executive branch, including failing to pay contractors for services, failing to provide documents requested by Congress, destroying notes on Iran-Contra, using investigations to exact retribution against political enemies and serving as "private attorney" to others being investigated for their involvement in Iran-Contra (since Bolton was potentially a target of the investigation he potentially had a conflict of interest between his client's interests, his own and his employer's).

ACTION: Call or write your Senator and let them know that you (or your organization if applicable) opposes the Nomination of John R. Bolton to be Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs.