The End of the American Revolution
The resignation of John Bolton as U.S. Ambassador to the UN probably seals the fate of the second American Revolution. Complain as one might, and many do, about the execution of policy in the Bush Administration, it had its intellectual house in order. John Bolton was an effective and powerfully articulate spokesman for democracy, liberty and a pointed understanding of our enemies.
The resignation of John Bolton as U.S. Ambassador to the UN probably seals the fate of the second American Revolution. Complain as one might, and many do, about the execution of policy in the Bush Administration, it had its intellectual house in order. John Bolton was an effective and powerfully articulate spokesman for democracy, liberty and a pointed understanding of our enemies.
The administration had understood that repressive governments – whether friends of ours or foes – maintained power by a combination of ruthlessness toward their own people and the assignment of blame for poor economic and social conditions to outside forces. America and Israel were the chief scapegoats. But as the entire Arab/Muslim Middle East was run by thugs of various sorts (Lebanon and Jordan being slightly more enlightened) all things Western, Christian, Jewish, modern, liberal and tolerant had to be guilty. In this atmosphere, it was not surprising that Islamic imperialists – Shiite and Sunni – called for ever more restrictive modes of Islam and the destruction of the West, and their calls fell on receptive ears, not only among the poorest, but among a literate class that had no economic or political future.
Out of this cauldron came 9-11. Although certainly not all Muslims, or even most, are inclined toward terrorism, terrorism in the 21st Century has a distinctly Islamic imperialist ideological underpinning, married to faster modes of travel and communication, and weapons of ever-greater destructive power.
Into the mess walked – strode – John Bolton. He was historically distrustful of multilateral agreements and institutions, in which those who lie, cheat, steal and kill have equal status with the good guys. He had championed understanding the varied links among Iraq, Iran, Syria, China, North Korea and Libya. He had promoted missile defense. He had defended Israel against those who would deny not only its legitimacy, but would deny it the same status and rights as every other country – including the right to sit on the UN Security Council and the right to “secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force.” He had saved the General Assembly from ignominy by single-handedly engineering reversal of the “Zionism is Racism” resolution.
It would be his almost thankless (because we thank him) task to round up America’s allies, including those in the Muslim world, to ensure that the airplanes used as cruise missiles against New York were the terrorists’ last great shot against the West, not some midpoint toward nuclear terrorism. With a President who believed the antidote to repression was freedom, John Bolton worked tirelessly for Security Council agreement on stifling Iran’s quest for nuclear capability, and for international cooperation to consolidate the gains for freedom in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Senators who bottled up his nomination in committee should be ashamed of themselves – he surely would have won a vote on the floor. John Bolton’s departure from Turtle Bay is a victory for the anti-American, anti-Israel and anti-democratic forces at the UN and in the Middle East.