Bolton: Limp Wrists Sink Ships
(AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
-John Bolton, former US ambassador to the United Nations. Bolton also said that the Bush administration "needs to stand up and defend itself. No reason to act limp-wristed."
All Blog Posts from Public Eye
Read all 'john bolton' posts in Public Eye
March 2, 2007 10:09 AM "They should defend their policies and not allow The New York Times to characterize the administration's policy. Get out and speak what's on their minds."
-John Bolton, former US ambassador to the United Nations. Bolton also said that the Bush administration "needs to stand up and defend itself. No reason to act limp-wristed."
-John Bolton, former US ambassador to the United Nations. Bolton also said that the Bush administration "needs to stand up and defend itself. No reason to act limp-wristed."
December 5, 2006 9:44 AM 
The radioactive material used to poison an ex-KGB spy can be purchased legally on the Web. Oh don't worry, you can't kill anyone with the small amounts available. Plus, new advances in nuke safety that sound like a Jerry Bruckheimer movie, John Bolton's resignation (or was it??) and killer quesadillas. The Skinny is Hillary Profita's take on the top news of the day and the best of the Web. Check it out here.
The Skinny: Polonium-210 Cleanup, Aisle Five
(AP)
December 4, 2006 11:11 AM The headlines this morning announced that United Nations Ambassador John Bolton would be resigning from his position. CBSNews.com initially headlined its story "U.N. Ambassador John Bolton Resigns." The Washington Post went with "Bush Accepts Bolton's U.N. Resignation." MSNBC had this: "John Bolton resigns as ambassador to U.N." And CNN.com noted that "U.N. ambassador Josh Bolton will resign within weeks after temporary term ends."
The White House quickly took issue with that characterization. "It is not a resignation," Deputy Press Secretary Dana Perino told CBS News. She noted that Bolton would be leaving his post when his recess appointment expired at the end of the 109th Congress. After an email with Perino's comment was passed around CBS News, the headline on the Bolton story was changed to "U.N. Ambassador John Bolton To Step Down."
Why is Perino stressing that the word "resign" isn't right? Because, as we saw with the "civil war" debate, there is a widespread belief that the words used to describe a particular situation can have an impact on public opinion. To "resign," in the minds of many, is to leave a post early, often for having done something wrong. That is not the case here, as Bolton is serving out his term before stepping down, likely because he has little hope of being confirmed for a full appointment by the Senate. The Bush administration would much rather push the idea that Bolton is a successful ambassador derailed by Congress than have the public hear about the resignation of a high-profile administration official.
It's no surprise, then, that Bush did not use the "r" word in his statement today on Bolton. Just as it's no surprise that he said this: "I am deeply disappointed that a handful of United States Senators prevented Ambassador Bolton from receiving the up or down vote he deserved in the Senate. They chose to obstruct his confirmation, even though he enjoys majority support in the Senate, and even though their tactics will disrupt our diplomatic work at a sensitive and important time. This stubborn obstructionism ill serves our country, and discourages men and women of talent from serving their Nation."
One could argue that, in a case like this, there is little difference between resigning and stepping down in light of the writing on the wall. But perception can be just as important as reality in politics – if not more so – which is why the Bush administration is so quick to fight the war over words.
White House Contests Claim That Bolton 'Resigned'
(AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
The White House quickly took issue with that characterization. "It is not a resignation," Deputy Press Secretary Dana Perino told CBS News. She noted that Bolton would be leaving his post when his recess appointment expired at the end of the 109th Congress. After an email with Perino's comment was passed around CBS News, the headline on the Bolton story was changed to "U.N. Ambassador John Bolton To Step Down."
Why is Perino stressing that the word "resign" isn't right? Because, as we saw with the "civil war" debate, there is a widespread belief that the words used to describe a particular situation can have an impact on public opinion. To "resign," in the minds of many, is to leave a post early, often for having done something wrong. That is not the case here, as Bolton is serving out his term before stepping down, likely because he has little hope of being confirmed for a full appointment by the Senate. The Bush administration would much rather push the idea that Bolton is a successful ambassador derailed by Congress than have the public hear about the resignation of a high-profile administration official.
It's no surprise, then, that Bush did not use the "r" word in his statement today on Bolton. Just as it's no surprise that he said this: "I am deeply disappointed that a handful of United States Senators prevented Ambassador Bolton from receiving the up or down vote he deserved in the Senate. They chose to obstruct his confirmation, even though he enjoys majority support in the Senate, and even though their tactics will disrupt our diplomatic work at a sensitive and important time. This stubborn obstructionism ill serves our country, and discourages men and women of talent from serving their Nation."
One could argue that, in a case like this, there is little difference between resigning and stepping down in light of the writing on the wall. But perception can be just as important as reality in politics – if not more so – which is why the Bush administration is so quick to fight the war over words.
June 8, 2006 3:27 PM 
It's getting buried by the al-Zarqawi news, but yesterday mustachioed American ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton had the ambassadorial version of a hissyfit over the words of U.N. Deputy Secretary General Mark Malloch Brown.
On Tuesday, Brown berated the United States for not sufficiently supporting the U.N. and encouraging the international body's critics. "The prevailing practice of seeking to use the U.N. almost by stealth as a diplomatic tool while failing to stand up for it against its domestic critics is simply not sustainable," he said.
Brown also played media critic: "Much of the public discourse that reaches the U.S. heartland has been largely abandoned to its loudest detractors such as Rush Limbaugh and Fox News," he said.
Shockingly, the criticisms did not play well with Bolton.
"I've known you since 1989, and I'm telling you this is the worst mistake by a senior U.N. official that I have seen in that entire time," he told Secretary General Kofi Annan. He called Brown's a "condescending, patronizing tone about the American people. Fundamentally, very sadly, this was a criticism of the American people, by an international civil servant, and it's just illegitimate," adding: "Even though the target of the speech was the United States, the victim, I feel, will be the United Nations."
Oh, it's on.
Diplomatic Tomfoolery
(AP)
On Tuesday, Brown berated the United States for not sufficiently supporting the U.N. and encouraging the international body's critics. "The prevailing practice of seeking to use the U.N. almost by stealth as a diplomatic tool while failing to stand up for it against its domestic critics is simply not sustainable," he said.
Brown also played media critic: "Much of the public discourse that reaches the U.S. heartland has been largely abandoned to its loudest detractors such as Rush Limbaugh and Fox News," he said.
Shockingly, the criticisms did not play well with Bolton.
"I've known you since 1989, and I'm telling you this is the worst mistake by a senior U.N. official that I have seen in that entire time," he told Secretary General Kofi Annan. He called Brown's a "condescending, patronizing tone about the American people. Fundamentally, very sadly, this was a criticism of the American people, by an international civil servant, and it's just illegitimate," adding: "Even though the target of the speech was the United States, the victim, I feel, will be the United Nations."
Oh, it's on.
Author Thomas Friedman on Obama's Afghanistan plan and the war on terror.
