You must be joking, pal!

WASHINGTON- For the second time in a month, Senate Democrats blocked a vote on Monday evening on the nomination of John R. Bolton to be ambassador to the United Nations, raising the possibility that President Bush will circumvent the confirmation process and appoint Mr. Bolton when Congress recesses (The New York Times) .

Senate Democrats have requested the White House release documents relating to Mr Bolton’s tenure as under secretary of state for arms control before a vote can take place. It seems like a reasonable enough demand to me.

When asked about the possibility of a recess appointment at a White House news conference at the end of a meeting with European Union and European Commission leaders, Bush avoided the question: "I think Mr. Bolton ought to get an up-or-down vote on the Senate floor - that's my call to the Senate." Why would the inarticulate moron venture something beyond platitudes or his teleprompter text?

To add insult to injury, he added, "The American people know why I nominated him - because the U.N. needs reform, and I thought it made sense to send a reformer to the United Nations." Reformer, my ass! The man is an out-of-control bully whose nasty reputation follows him like a foul odor wherever he goes. And if the American people really want to know why Bush nominated him, I suggest they look into Bolton’s behind-the-scenes role in the 2000 Florida recount battle.

UN diplomats and European officials have been puzzled by the nomination of someone who has repeatedly said the UN is there to serve the interests of the US. Former colleagues and subordinates have expressed shock that someone with Bolton’s vindictive streak and violent temper will represent the US on the UN Security Council.

Court records show Bolton’s first wife, Christina, fled their home when Bolton was traveling abroad in 1982 taking with her most of the furniture. One really has to wonder what kind of person this man is. And, so, it’s no wonder the White House refuses to release the documents!

Here's my first try at a blog entry and I have been away for a week...well, 'away' is a manner of speaking: I have been on jury duty. But what an exciting week it has been!

First, it was Janice Rogers Brown who was confirmed to the federal appeals court in Washington, D.C. Judge Brown has on several occasions argued that, in reaching their decisions, judges should look to 'higher authorities' rather than legal precedent or the letter of the law. Go figure!

A day later, William Holcombe Pryor Jr. was confirmed to the US Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, covering Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. Judge Pryor has called Roe v. Wade "the worst abomination of constitutional law" in history; he has also compared the right to same-sex relations to the right to bestiality and necrophilia. One can only be terrified at the prospect of a Bush appointment to the US Supreme Court.

And then there was Philip Cooney. Mr Cooney until very recently served as chief of staff of the White House Council on Environmental Quality. He resigned last Friday over the brouhaha over his having edited government climate reports in ways that play down the direct links between greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. Immediately before his White House stint, Mr Cooney was a staff attorney at the American Petroleum Institute and a lobbyist against limits on, guess!, greenhouse gas emissions. We now learn Mr. Cooney was hired by ExxonMobil. "Perhaps he won't even notice he has changed jobs," said David G. Hawkins, the director of the climate center at the Natural Resources Defense Council. But this is not about Mr. Cooney. It’s about Bush and Cheney and their demented plan to please their corporate buddies by undoing regulations, put in place over the course of several decades to protect the environment.

Nobody seems to care. People seem content getting fat sitting on their butt reading Time Magazine (if that!) and watching reality shows on TV. It’s all rather surreal, I say.

If all this gets you depressed, go for something funny instead !