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Former U.N. Ambassador Weighs In on McCain
Former United States Ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, made news today at the Conservative Political Action Conference by announcing his support for the likely Republican nominee, Sen. John McCain. Bolton is very highly regarded by conservatives for his tenure at the U.N. and for his willingness to combat the policies of the State Department, where Bolton was once an assistant Secretary of State for arms proliferation. His assessment of Sen. McCain could carry great weight among conservatives who believe that national security and the war on terror are the most important issues in the upcoming presidential election campaign.Bolton did not endorse McCain outright, but he gave a strong defense of McCain and his positions on national security. Bolton told the assembled delegates that the state of affairs in the world required that the next president be "ready on day one" to handle national security challenges.
In his State Department post, Bolton ran the Bush Administration's Proliferation Security Initiative and oversaw the United States' efforts to prevent weapons of mass destruction from falling into the hands of rogue governments worldwide. He was so successful in the program and in getting other nations to sign on the project, that President Bush nominated him for the U.N. Ambassadorship in the summer of 2004. Bolton was vigorously opposed by Democrats and moderate Republicans on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Ultimately, he was given a recess appointment by the president when it became clear that his nomination would not be confirmed in the full Senate.
Bolton revealed for the first time in his CPAC address that Sen. McCain was very active behind the scenes in trying to secure his confirmation in the Senate. Bolton said that to his knowledge, McCain had never spoken publicly of his role in trying to secure confirmation for the controversial nominee; and suggested that it was a measure of McCain's character that he was willing to vote for and work for Bolton's confirmation in the face of very difficult opposition.
Bolton said that he appreciated Sen. McCain's positions with respect to Iran's nuclear program, calling them stronger than the Bush Administration position. He remarked that Iran and North Korea's illicit nuclear weapons programs are the greatest national security threats to the United States. Bolton suggested that McCain is the candidate best prepared to handle these challenges.
Bolton concluded his comments on the presidential race by making a surprise comparison of conservatives wary of supporting McCain to Vladimir Lenin. He said that those conservatives who would rather see a Democrat elected than support McCain are essentially espousing the former Soviet revolutionary's axiom "Worse is better." Bolton said that conservatives should realize that their failure to support McCain for president would lead to the election of a president they would consider far worse. "I will be supporting John McCain for president, and I hope you will too," he told the conference.
Bolton's support should help sway some of the conference attendees to McCain's side. His speech was presented to a packed ballroom and was very well received. It was an unexpected development that Bolton threw his considerable foreign policy and conservative credentials behind McCain. He will need several more unexpected developments like this if his campaign is to begin to gain traction among the conservative base of the Republican Party.
Recent Comments
(Page 1 of 1)K.B.DePugh7:39PMFeb 8th 2008
I finished reading an article in the current Newsweek magazine on Senator McCain. He has certain personality traits that would not become a U.S. President. He can be very rude, snide, and vendictive. He does not forget who he sees as an enemy, and goes for the kil.
kaybill666
JIM11:51PMFeb 8th 2008
Thoughts for Vice President..Joe Lieberman?
David S.11:54PMFeb 8th 2008
So let me get this straight. John Bolton spends a year and a half as U.S. Ambassador and he suddenly has all this clout among conservatives? If he was so indispensable, perhaps he should have hung around longer.
This guy seems to me to have the personality of a TV test pattern and he appeals only to hard line war hawks.
Somehow I doubt the average Republican voter cares about Bolton at all.
Edward Hackett2:50AMFeb 9th 2008
John Bolton has been well known by conservatives for a long time. Mr. Bolton couldn't hang around longer because a recess appointment has a deadline. When it expired, by law he had to leave the post. The Dems. were so afraid that Mr. Bolton would tell the French, Russians, and Chinese to pound sand that they refused to have an up or down vote for his confirmation.
paul1:11PMFeb 9th 2008
John McCain should forget about running for the presidency then he wouldn't have to worry about the vp
position,I would never vote for someone who wants to continue the occupation of Iraq for another 100 years and he is too much like bush and cheny.
nick bedway1:52PMFeb 9th 2008
Well John Bolton, you displayed your true colors by supporting a liar like John McCain for President. Straight Talk express my rear. The man has constantly lied to us about the mission in Iraq and the surge. Obviously it was going to be more peaceful when you poured hundreds of thousands of the best fighting men and women in the universe into a small country like Iraq. But winning the peace is another thing. There will never be peace in the country because the three warring countries get their jollies by fighting and maiming each other. There will never be a united government in that country. Hell, we dont have one here now. The repukes keep striking fear into everything while the democrats dont have the chutzpahs to stand up and tell the worst president in American history that enough is enough and we aren't going to tolerate any more American deaths in that god-forsaken country. It is not surrender we are asking of our leaders and what we voted for in November of 2006. It is educated leadership in what is the best way to keep our country safe, not the policies of the war-monger buffoons we have in Washington today. Go ahead and support John McCain if you want. But remember you should have been careful about what you asked for. You might get it. And the results will be disastrous for our country.
JIM6:48PMFeb 10th 2008
Thoughts for Vice President..Joe Lieberman?
Geo Washington6:25PMFeb 17th 2008
It is refreshing to see someone with Foreign Affairs experience support a candidate. Mr. Bolton did a commendable job at the UN and made a noble effort to address important issues in reforming the UN. He could provide invaluable support in how to reform the US Dept of State and make it more effective in transformational diplomacy--a goal that Ms. Rice has started.
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Strong4:36PMFeb 8th 2008
ORDINARILY, ENDORSEMENTS OF CANDIDATES BY POLITICIANS SHOULD BE VIEWED WITH JAUNDICED EYE. LIKE TED "WOMANIZER" KENNEDY ENDORSING OBAMA. BUT EVERY SO OFTEN, A PERSON WILL ENDORSE A CANDIDATE--A PERSON WHO HAS EARNED THE RIGHT TO BE LISTENED TO. SUCH PERSON IS JOHN "MR. U.N." BOLTON WHO HAS ENDORSED JOHN MCCAIN. FROM THIS MOMENT ON I AM A MCCAIN SUPPORTER--SOMETHING I WOULD NOT HAVE THOUGHT EVEN REMOTELY POSSIBLE 24 HOURS AGO.
BUT JOHN BOLTON IS MADE UP OF THE "RIGHT STUFF." ALTHOUGH HE'S A CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICAN HE HAS THE SAME STUFF AS THOSE OLD-TIME DEMPCRATS WHO PUT GOD AND COUNTRY AHEAD OF PARTY--FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT; HARRY TRUMAN; JOHN KENNEDY; ROBERT KENNEDY; ADLAI STEVENSON; HUBERT HUMPHREY; TIP O'NEILL..OH FOR THOSE GOLDEN DAYS SANS NANCY "MATCHSTICK EYES" PELOSI; HARRY "THE BLAND" REID; TEDDY "THE SWIMMER" KENNEDY; JOHN "THE FRENCHMAN" KERRY; HILLARY "BAGGY HIPS" CLINTON; BILL "SLICK WILLIE/CIGAR USING" CLINTON.