[This is my first attempt at a diary; feel free to critique and/or add tags you think appropriate. Thanks, Joon]
I yesterday listened to an NPR interview with Ambassador Bolton regarding the UN Resolution pertaining to Syrian obstruction of the Mehlis Committee's investigation of the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
I was struck by the unmitigated hypocrisy that a representative of the government of the United States could stand wagging his finger at another country, any country, about obstructing an investigation into complicity of that government's officials in a crime against its citizens.
What a stark contrast to what Harry Reid and Dick Durbin undertook to accomplish at nearly the same moment in our own Senate!
Here are a few statements by Ambassador Bolton I excerpted and transcribed from that interview:
"What we said to the Syrians in clear and unmistakable terms was that they had to cooperate fully and immediately with the Mehlis Commission, which is the Commission the Security Council set up to investigate the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minster Rafik Hariri. And we said very clearly in the resolution that if the Syrians did not cooperate fully that serious consequences could follow. [snip]
"All five members [permanent members of the Security Council] said, "Your obstruction has got to stop. [snip]
"I think the clear implication of the Mehlis Report is that senior levels of the Syrian government...certainly, senior members of the Syrian security forces, were involved, but one of the reasons that Mehlis could not reach final conclusions in his work in aiding the government of Lebanon was because of Syrian obstructionism.
"So, that's why it's so important why foreign ministers from 11 of the 15 security council capitals came to this meeting, to tell the Syrian government that if they didn't stop their policy of obstruction, to allow the investigator to follow the evidence to wherever it might lead, the Council was gonna come back and be prepared to take some stiff measures against the Syrian government."
Reporter Michele Norris pointedly asked Bolton if evidence in the assassination pointed to the Syrian President's office. Bolton replied:
Well, I'm not gonna speculate on that. I think the Mehlis Commission has done a very professional job in it's work; they've followed the evidence, but not overstated the evidence, and I think that's why the Security Council created the Commission. We'll let them do the investigation.
Now... let's take a look at an excerpt from Senator Jay Rockefeller's statement following the indictment of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby:
To date, Congress has completely failed to answer these critical questions. The fact is that at any time the Senate Intelligence Committee pursued a line of questioning that brought us close to the White House, our efforts were thwarted. If my Republican colleagues are not prepared to undertake a full and serious congressional investigation into the potential misuse of intelligence, then I regretfully conclude that we have no choice but to pursue an outside independent investigation. The American people deserve answers and they want the truth.
Harry Reid, on the Senate floor yesterday:
"Given this Administration's pattern of squashing those who challenge its misstatements, what has been the response of this Republican-controlled Congress? Again, absolutely nothing. And with their inactions, they provide political cover for this Administration at the same time they keep the truth from our troops who continue to make large sacrifices in Iraq. [snip]
"America deserves better than this. They also deserve a searching and comprehensive investigation into how the Bush administration brought this country to war."
The pièce de résistance? Bolton basically winds up with an endorsement of what Reid and Durbin undertook yesterday:
"I think it's up to the people of Syria here to look at what's been happening, what kind of pressure their government is under, and to draw the appropriate conclusions. Right now, what we want is cooperation from the Syrian government, and if we don't get it, I think that's a matter for the Syrian people, as well as the Security Council. [snip]
"They hold the keys to their own problem here. If they cooperate fully, then the Mehlis investigation will draw it's own conclusions and we'll go from there. [snip]
"Our patience with their obstruction of the Mehlis investigation is over. And we want immediate cooperation."
[my emphasis]
And finally, Reid again:
"We demand that the Intelligence Committee and other committees in this body with jurisdiction over these matters carry out a full and complete investigation immediately as called for by Democrats in the committee's annual intelligence authorization report
Amen, Harry. Amen.
NPR Interview here
Hat tip also to Seeing the Forest, Culture Kitchen and the ever reliable Crook and Liars