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BREAKING: Bolton Responsible for Illegal Firing

John Bolton orchestrated the illegal firing of Jose Bustani, the head of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), an international arms control agency. AP reports:

A former Bolton deputy says the U.S. undersecretary of state felt Jose Bustani “had to go,” particularly because the Brazilian was trying to send chemical weapons inspectors to Baghdad. That might have helped defuse the crisis over alleged Iraqi weapons and undermined a U.S. rationale for war.

Bolton contacted Bustani directly, and demanded he resign. When that didn’t work, Bolton upped the ante. He called for an unprecedented special session of the OPCW conference and demanded Bustani’s ouster. Bolton threatened to withhold U.S. dues to the organization — which amounted to 22 percent of the total budget — if he didn’t get his way. Bolton’s strong arm tactics scored him a narrow victory:

Only 113 nations were represented the Americans, with British help, got the required two-thirds vote of those present and voting. But that amounted to only 48 in favor of removing Bustani — and seven opposed and 43 abstaining — in an organization then with 145 member states.

Bustani appealed the decision to a U.N tribunal. They didn’t look kindly on Bolton’s conduct:

In a stern rebuke issued in July 2003, the three-member U.N. tribunal said the U.S. allegations were “extremely vague” and the dismissal “unlawful.” It said international civil servants must not be made “vulnerable to pressures and to political change.”

Last week, President Bush said that Bolton has “the votes to get confirmed.” In truth, his nomination remains up in the air. According to Steve Clemons, there are 46 solid votes against Bolton. Ben Nelson (D-FL), John McCain (R-AZ) and Arlen Specter (R-PA) are toss-ups.

There are several moderate, open-minded Senators who are being counted as Bolton supporters. Information like this could very well change some minds and tip the balance.

Politics

Right-Wing Congressman’s Shocking Embrace of Extremists

Yasith Chhun counts among his friends Rep. Dana Rohrbacher (R-CA), and the warm feelings are mutual. According to yesterday’s L.A. Times, Rohrabacher says he’s “a supporter of Chhun and his allies.”

Just one problem: Yasith Chhun has “often boasted to newspapers and magazines about masterminding an attack on government buildings in Cambodia,” and has now been indicted by a U.S. grand jury for “attempting to kill the prime minister, attack government buildings and launch small-scale attacks on karaoke bars and fuel depots.” Chhun’s “allies” — a group called the Cambodian Freedom Fighters — are considered a terrorist organization by the State Department. Just last year, after the group made a failed coup attempt, Chhun plainly admitted to the New York Times that “he planned more violence. ‘We won’t stop. We’ll have more plans in the future. … Next time we will attack the whole country.’”

And, to be clear, Rohrbacher says he supports Chhun despite being “aware of the State Department’s concerns.”

Even more frightening, this apparently isn’t the first time Rohrbacher displayed a delusional willingness to place trust in avowed extremists. According to federal documents reviewed by the Orange County Weekly, Rohrabacher “lobbied shamelessly for the Taliban” throughout the 1990s, with a 1996 Washington newsletter pointing out his claims that the “Taliban could provide stability,” that its leaders were “not terrorists or revolutionaries,” and that it would develop a “disciplined, moral society” that did not harbor terrorists. Ignoring an explicit federal law banning unauthorized individual attempts to conduct American foreign policy, Rohrabacher in April of 2001 “opened negotiations with the Taliban at the Sheraton Hotel in Doha, Qatar,” meeting with Taliban Foreign Minister Mullah Wakil Ahmed Muttawakil, an advisor to Mullah Omar.

As Kevin Drum points out, Rohrbacher’s philosophy appears to be, “As long as they target people I don’t like, terrorist groups are OK with me.”

Politics

Why Does Hollywood Hate American Workers?

Apparently those bleeding heart celebrities don’t care much for workers’ rights.

A report from yesterday’s Wal-Mart shareholders’ meeting:

Rocker Jon Bon Jovi and pop star Jessica Simpson are among the celebrities attending Friday morning’s Wal-Mart annual meeting in Fayetteville.

Grammy-winning gospel-soul singer Yolanda Adams opened the meeting with a couple of songs. Simpson sang the national anthem and Bon Jovi later performed for the crowd. The event always draws numerous celebrities.

And the New York Times reports that ABC is planning a Wal-Mart-themed reality show…

For the first time, Wal-Mart Stores is becoming a major sponsor of a reality television show, by signing a branded-entertainment agreement with ABC for “The Scholar,” a summer series that begins a six-week run on Monday night. Wal-Mart will be woven into the plots of episodes of the show, which is centered on a competition among 10 high school seniors from across the country for a grand prize of a full college scholarship, valued at $250,000, covering tuition and expenses.

“The Scholar” was “different from anything brought to us before,” [vice president for corporate affairs Betsy Reithemeyer] added, because it is “a unique way to get out the message on national television that we’re supporting education.”

Of course, this is all part of a Hollywood plot to infiltrate Wal-Mart so it can push worker’s rights from the inside, as Bill O’Reilly will dutifully explain on Monday’s show.

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