No, kids, this is not the first time, nor will it be the last. The recess nomination of John Bolton to act as the United States’ Ambassador to the United Nations is just the latest of many atrocities George W. Bush has perpetrated since taking office. Although recess nominations are not a rarity, it is rare for a position of this magnitude to be filled through a recess nomination.

Bolton failed to receive Senate conformation, not once, but twice. And perhaps the best reason why Bolton should not be allowed to serve as U.N. ambassador is the cowardice of allowing a man, who has repeatedly referred to the U.N. as a meaningless entity, act in such a powerful position. According to an article by Edith M. Lederer of The Washington Post, Bolton said the following in reference to the validity of the U.N., [There is] “‘no such thing as the United Nations,’ just ‘an international community that occasionally can be led by the only real power left in the world, and that is the United States.’” And so the question remains.

Why is this man, who obviously possesses no faith in the work of the U.N., now holding a position that will soon be responsible for contributing to the vast changes that the U.N. will undergo in September? John Bolton should be as far away from the U.N. as George Bush is from alternate fuels. Our system of government, which includes checks and balances, is made to prevent extremists — on either side of the political spectrum — from gaining too much power. When the Senate twice rejected the nomination of Bolton, this should have been a clear indicator to our pretentious president that Bolton was not the right man for the job.

Instead Bush acted in typical Bush fashion. He ignored what society and the majority of Senators had to say, and did whatever he wants. Senators, both Democrat and Republican, have expressed concerns about the ability of Bolton to carry out his responsibilities in a positive fashion. According to a May 2005 issue of Time, Sen. Joseph Voinovich (R-Ohio), went on record saying “My conscious got me ...” and prevented him from agreeing with his Republican counterparts in supporting Bolton’s nomination. Bolton also tripped over his words to Congress when asked if he had been questioned by government officials about Iraq attempting to smuggle arms from Africa before the war. Somehow this little investigation must have slipped his mind when asked if he had been questioned by the State Department. Still, this oversight did not stop Bush from making Bolton his new wingman for the U.N..

Bush has praised Bolton as the right man for the job saying “Ambassador Bolton believes passionately in the goals of the United Nations Charter, to advance peace and liberty and human rights,” according to The Washington Post. Maybe the President was off vacationing on the ranch when The Post also quoted Bolton as saying that it, “wouldn’t make a bit of difference’ if the top 10 floors of the United Nations — which include the secretary-general’s office — vanished from the 39-story headquarters building. Although the majority of Senators saw right through John Bolton and his series of lies and blatant disregard for the U.N., he will now act as Ambassador to the U.N. until January of 2007.

Instead of finding out just how much damage Bolton can do in New York in the next year and a half, citizens must hold Bolton accountable for all actions he takes in his new office while advocating that he is not now — and will never be — the right person for the job.

As for the president, it’s hardly a surprise that George would pick someone as dishonest as John Bolton for a position that requires a great magnitude of respect for the other 190 nations of the world. After all, it takes a liar to love a liar.