Free Republic

Former US ambassador to the United Nations on Wednesday blasted President Barack Obama's sanctions-driven approach to curtailing Iran's nuclear ambitions in an op-ed he wrote for USA Today. “A nuclear armed Iran will be his most lasting legacy,” Bolton – a long-established proponent of a pre-emptive strike on Iran’s nuclear program – wrote of Obama. "Sanctions have long been touted as the answer, but they are not," Bolton explained. "Sadly, we have been behind the curve for years, and recent Obama administration claims about slowing Tehran down are little more than re-election propaganda." Noting that Iran's alliances with China, Cuba,...

(CNN) – John Bolton, the former U.S. permanent representative to the United Nations, is set to endorse presidential candidate Mitt Romney, a source close to Romney’s presidential campaign said Wednesday. Bolton served in the administrations of former Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush before former President George W. Bush appointed him the U.N. role.

John Bolton announced a few minutes ago that he has endorsed Mitt Romney in the 2012 election campaign. He believes Romney is the strongest conservative, who is electable. Bolton has informed himself of romney's writings and beliefs, and considers him the best conservative in the race. Greta's show repeats on Fox a 1 a.m.

First Obama and Biden wanted to work with what they called the "moderate Taliban." Even the Taliban thought that was ridiculous. And it was -- sort of like a chaste prostitute. The Taliban does not share Western values, goals, objectives. The Taliban's playbook is the qur'an and its stated aims. The whole idea of a moderate Taliban or a moderate Islam is false, and Obama knows it. So now, according to Biden, the Taliban is not our enemy at all. Never mind their role in 9/11. Never mind their hosting al-Qaeda camps and working with al-Qaeda. It amounts to surrender,...

When John Bolton was asked the question of what he thought was the greatest misconception that Democrats have about Republicans, I honestly didn’t expect such a brilliantly deep answer. I guess I’ve gotten used to fluff. But Bolton hit it out of the park and I just had to start the day with it:**snip**“The core misimpression is that a fundamental belief in liberty and it’s implications is somehow cruel and uncaring. When in fact, liberty is absolutely central to the most massive economic change in the history of the world that has brought more concrete material advantages to people in...

WASHINGTON -- Newt Gingrich said Wednesday that he would offer controversial former United Nations Ambassador John Bolton the position of secretary of state if he wins the presidency. Gingrich earned cheers for the choice at a forum hosted by the Republican Jewish Coalition, at which nearly all the GOP presidential aspirants appeared separately. Bolton served as President George W. Bush's ambassador to the U.N. for more than a year but never won Senate confirmation. Critics described him as hotheaded, and he famously loathed the U.N., which won him conservative fans. Bolton discussed a 2012 presidential run himself but decided against...

Newt Gingrich told those gathered at a meeting of the Republican Jewish Coalition in Washington on Wednesday that if elected president next year, he will tap former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton to be his secretary of state. "If you will accept it, I will ask John Bolton to be secretary of state," he said to cheers during his remarks in the Ronald Reagan Building............

Former Speaker of the House is facing questions over whether he broke the law by announcing on Wednesday that he would appoint former United Nations Ambassador John Bolton as his Secretary of State if elected. Gingrich made his remarks at the Republican Jewish Coalition's Candidates Forum, saying he would first get Bolton to agree to change the State Department's culture of "appeasement." But Taegan Goddard at Political Wire notes that Gingrich may have run afoul of federal law barring a candidate from promising a political appointment for the purposes of personal political gain. Here's Title 18, Part I, Chapter 29,...

Via Mediaite, how much redder could this red meat be? The answer is none. None more red. Who cares if it’s kinda sorta illegal to promise appointments as a candidate? Bolton’s a rock star among righty hawks and Newt knows it only too well. Dude, I think he might have just sealed the deal. Just one question: Would a Secretary of State Bolton get confirmed by the Senate? Granted, the GOP will probably have control next year, but the Democrats fought Bolton’s UN appointment under Bush tooth and nail. Their base would go berserk if they didn’t filibuster. And they...

Newt Gingrich promised conservatives on Tuesday he would ask former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton to be his secretary of state if he’s elected president next year, according to several of those who met with him Hours later he repeated that vow publicly to the Republican Jewish Coalition, winning a round of applause. “If he accepts it, I will ask John Bolton to be secretary of state,” the former House speaker said. During the closed-door meeting in Arlington, Mr. Gingrich spoke and fielded questions for about two hours from 70 conservatives, and they said afterward that they came away impressed. One...

In his speech before the Republican Jewish Coalition, Newt Gingrich just pledged that, if elected, he would ask John Bolton to be his secretary of state.

Mitt Romney says the U.N. too often becomes a forum for tyrants when it should promote democracy and human rights. Newt Gingrich pledges to take on the U.N.'s "absurdities." Herman Cain says he would change some of its rules. Rick Perry says he would consider pulling the United States out of the U.N. altogether. All that U.N. bashing has raised questions about whether a Republican victory could strain the relationship between the United Nations and its host country, the United States. President Barack Obama's Democratic administration considers the U.N. critical to the country's interests, while Republicans traditionally have been disenchanted...

While Herman Cain’s foreign policy stumbles have raised questions about his command of the facts, he says he would consult with military officials and other expert advisers to guide him through the thicket of world affairs.So who might advise a President Cain? Henry Kissinger, the 88-year-old former secretary of state, has already turned down returning to that job in a Cain administration, the candidate says.“He said he’s perfectly happy doing what he’s doing,” Mr. Cain told The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.In a new video excerpt posted on the newspaper’s Web site, Mr. Cain responds to a question from editors and reporters...

Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich just opened his Manchester, N.H., campaign office moments ago. Gingrich told the volunteers and visitors he would take questions. “Can you give us a hint of who might be in your Cabinet,” a man shouted from the back of the crowded room of about 200 people. “Well I’ll give you an example I’m looking for,” Gingrich said. “I believe we have to overhaul the State Department very dramatically. I think we need a secretary of state who is tough-minded and who would represent American interests. I think that Ambassador Bolton represents that kind of person.”

PHOENIX (AP) — A federal judge Friday dismissed Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer's lawsuit that accused the Obama administration of failing to enforce immigration laws or maintain control of her state's border with Mexico. The dismissal by U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton comes in a counter-lawsuit filed by Brewer as part of the Justice Department's challenge to Arizona's controversial immigration enforcement law. The Republican governor was seeking a court order that would require the federal government to take extra steps, such as more border fencing, to protect Arizona until the border is controlled. Bolton said Brewer's claim that Washington has failed...

Gosh I love John Bolton. He really knows how to put the UN in its place: Well if I were Israel and/or the United States, I wouldn’t pay any attention to a General Assembly resolution. Look, the General Assembly could vote this week to make Disney Land a state and it wouldn’t have any more impact outside of the General Assembly hall for Palestine or Disney Land. When Greta asserted that the Obama administration is doing everything it can to fight Palestinian statehood, Bolton quickly challenged that premise by suggesting that they could threaten to defund the UN over a...

John Bolton has decided not to throw his hat in the ring for president in 2012, which kinda makes me sad. I think he would have gotten my vote over everyone and I would have loved to see him in a debate.

Today, one 911 mom, who lost her son, said to me of our 911 Freedom Rally, "I am looking forward to the rally. It is a place we can be free to really remember the who, why, when and where of 9-11. The morning ceremony is devoid of any meaning." The NY Post is reporting that many 911 family members have not been invited to the official ceremonies of 911. This is just monstrous. First it was clergy, then 911 first responders who were excluded from the official ceremonies -- now it's the victims' families. Mayor Gloomberg not only lost...

Adam Smith wrote in The Wealth of Nations that “the first duty of the sovereign, that of protecting the society from the violence and invasion of other independent societies, can be performed only by means of a military force.” Today, failing to protect our national security inevitably endangers our economic prosperity by making us vulnerable to global adversaries. It is clear that President Obama does not agree with Smith’s wisdom. Obama’s policies are jeopardizing not only our national security and economy, but our constitutional sovereignty too. That is why I have been considering running for President. The Republican Party must...

Aug 10, 2011 - 4:05 - Former U.N. ambassador on why he might enter 2012 race

Serious questions remain about the national security implications of the proposed deal to raise the federal debt ceiling. With members of Congress essentially being asked to vote immediately to avoid defaulting on the national debt, they are also entitled to immediate and compelling answers to the defense-related questions. For fiscal year 2012 and 2013, cuts in defense spending remain uncertain, with reductions as much as three percent below last year’s level still possible. Depending on the outcome of further negotiations over the size and allocation of those reductions, these cuts alone may well be quite harmful. The best that can...

While the outcome of NATO’s intervention in Libya is still uncertain, the ongoing drift toward a negotiated solution is fraught with potentially debilitating problems for the Western alliance. Ousting Qaddafi remains a possibility, and could have been achieved much earlier with swift and decisive action, but the prospects for a clear NATO victory are now quite uncertain. The collapse of NATO’s resolve came in several stages, with the seeds planted right at the outset of the military action. First, President Obama signaled hesitancy and weakness by waiting until Qaddafi’s forces had nearly taken Benghazi , the rebels’ key stronghold, and...

The Band of Mothers along with Gold Star Mother Debbie Lee, members of the Gathering of Eagles and FreeRepublic Early in the afternoon of Tuesday July 26th, Suzi "Medea" Benjamin, co-founder of the anti-war group Code pink, stopped by to talk to the patriots on the corner of the Canon House building in Washington DC to spout her usual anti-American and anti-military propaganda. After about 10 mins of back and forth with Beverly Perlson, founder of The Band of Mothers, she left seeming disturbed by the Patriots presense on Capitol hill. After Suzi left, Ambassador John Bolton, former US ambassador...

John Bolton, former US ambassador to the United Nations, sharply criticized the Obama administration’s handling of the Middle East while testifying before the House Foreign Affairs Committee Thursday morning. Bolton focused on Iran and Syria, laying out steps the United States should take to prevent the two governments from acquiring nuclear weapons. He also had strong words for current US policy toward Israel. “And America’s disdain for Israel, its truest ally in the region, can hardly be comforting to those who have never enjoyed such close relations,” Bolton said in his testimony. “If this is how the United States now...

By John Bolton The opinions expressed are his own. With President Obama’s Libya policy staggering from one embarrassment to another, last week he and Secretary of State Clinton outdid themselves. They publicly welcomed Russia’s effort to insert itself as a mediator, an act of such strategic myopia that it must leave even Moscow’s leadership speechless. Permanent Security Council members Russia and China abstained on the initial resolution authorizing force to create a Libya no-fly zone and to protect innocent civilians. By not casting a veto, Russia thereby tacitly allowed military action to proceed. As they did, Russia repeatedly second-guessed and...

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain said Monday he would attack Iran to prevent it from acquiring nuclear weapons or to respond to aggression against Israel. Asked if he agreed with former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton’s contention that the “only realistic alternative … is to use force preemptively against Iran’s nuclear weapons program” since diplomacy has failed, Mr. Cain said he did, with one caveat. “There would be some other pieces of information I would need before I gave that order, but I’m saying that would be Option B,” Mr. Cain said during an interview with editors and reporters at The...

I bashed Mitt Romney, and I feel better. Try it!

US President Barack Obama is “the most anti-Israel president in the history of the state, without any question,” John Bolton, the former US envoy to the UN and a man considering entering the presidential race against Obama, told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday. “If you think that this is just a misunderstanding of where the green crayon went in 1949, then think again,” Bolton said of Obama. Bolton’s comments came during a meeting he had with the Post’s editorial board. Bolton, who is currently a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and a Fox News commentator, said that Obama bought...

Continued Bolton: "There are still major people considering whether to get in. ... And I think what this reflects is a continuing very strong desire on the part of a lot of people to find the exactly right candidate to run against Barack Obama. "The continuing belief that [Obama's] policies, domestically and internationally, are causing trouble for the United States well into the future – I think there's a very strong feeling that he needs to be defeated. But not real certainty. No coalescing around who the candidate ought to be," Bolton said. Bolton added he is considering running for...

Former US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton, who is considered a possible candidate for president, believes that Washington should pay more attention to South Caucasus. According to Georgian sources, the politician believes that the US government should not allow the growing influence of Russia in the region. "We must not forget the statement of Putin, which he made during the period of his presidency. Putin said that the collapse of the Soviet Union was the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century", said Bolton, adding that the current policy of Moscow in the South Caucasus is fully consistent with...

If John Bolton runs for president — and he very well might — he will run to win. “I would not run as a one-issue candidate,” Bolton says as we chat in his corner office, high above downtown Washington at the American Enterprise Institute. “Anybody who does that is declaring himself to be marginal.” Bolton, a former ambassador to the United Nations, is no sideshow. His walls are dotted with presidential appointments: He served Ronald Reagan as an assistant attorney general. George H. W. Bush tapped him for a top post at the State Department. For Bush the younger, he...

Bolton Seriously Considering Presidential Run by Jason Mattera 06/15/2011 Unimpressed with the current crop of candidates and their campaign themes, former UN Ambassador John Bolton says he’s strongly considering entering the GOP presidential race and will make a decision by Labor Day, he told HUMAN EVENTS in an exclusive interview. “I don’t see any of the Republicans in the race now who have made foreign policy a priority,” he said. “We’re sleepwalking into a real potential disaster.” Bolton said he understands the enormous economic challenges facing the country, but national security can’t take a back seat. “Our adversaries overseas are...

The combo has a lot of synergies if you think about it- and their abilities and experience complement each other very, very well. All her weak spots are his strengths and visa versa... but someone else as veep with Bolton at State works for me, too!  And while domestic issues are indeed pressing, I also demand a candidate that will put Iran back on their heels, an imperative task as far as I'm concerned- and thus a litmus test for me in the primaries, among others. And I believe Michele Bachmann can win Iowa and surprise a whole lot...

The list is lengthy. From the highly sensual Ursula Andress as Honey Rider to the electric Halle Berry as Jinx, every James Bond film is known as much for one gorgeous female character as it is for its high tech action and suave sophistication. But when it comes to the most recent selection, the casting folks hope they have broken the vault with Caterina Murino. The exotic beauty plays Solange in the latest Bond endeavor, Casino Royale, the first of Ian Fleming's wondrous Bond books. Somehow, the beautiful Murino managed only a fourth place finish in the 1996 Miss Italy...

Former United Nations ambassador and potential 2012 presidential candidate John Bolton told The Daily Caller he’s “glad” Fox News’s South Carolina presidential debate Thursday evening focused mostly on foreign policy. “I think it shows how early in the process it is and how really unstructured the debate over national security is,” Bolton told TheDC before speaking at a Republican National Lawyers Association event at the National Press Club. “I was glad that the Fox questioners raised it and I think it’s obviously appropriate in the week after the death of [al Qaeda leader Osama] bin Laden and in that sense,...

Bolton: Obama's Incompetence May Force Me to Run Former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton decries President Barack Obama's foreign policy as a failure and says he's considering seeking the GOP nomination for president in part to give that and national security the top priority they deserve. Obama's flawed policies are "not based in reality," the senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute said in an exclusive interview with Newsmax.TV at the annual meeting of the National Rifle Association in Pittsburgh. Up to 70,000 people are expected to attend the meeting this weekend. More on the story and video at link... http://www.newsmax.com/Headline/JohnBolton-BarackObama-ForeignPolicy-2012PresidentialElection/2011/04/30/id/394676#

John Bolton suggested Friday that Barack Obama is laying the foundation to push an ambitious gun control agenda if he wins a second term. "We can understand that, as he likes to say, he's playing the long game, and that 'leading from behind' means waiting until he's elected to a second term when he faces no further political constraints and his true agenda can come to the floor, "Bolton told thousands of gun owners at the National Rifle Association's annual meeting here. "And I believe right at the top of it is [to] increase gun control at the federal level...

I’m going to start off with the Presidential picks even though it’s secondary to our main purpose, and then get to the nitty gritty in the rest of the data. As always, contact me if you have questions or comments; the number of approaches I could take to highlight the data are nearly endless, so tell me if you have a particular wrinkle in mind. 7222 readers participated in the survey. Sarah Palin once again leads the Primary race among Hot Air readers. She is again followed by Herman Cain in second. Tim Pawlenty and Mitch Daniels take third and...

As promised last month, I’ve removed Chris Christie and Paul Ryan from the Presidential line due to their stated disinterest in running. I’ve removed Jim Demint, since he’s removed himself from running, as well. Because he has indicated an interest in running, I have added Rand Paul; if Paul supporters try to cheat as they notoriously do for his father Ron, I will remove Rand from subsequent polls.... ....Please vote only once. Your ballot should take less than a minute to complete. We'll announce the results after voting has concluded. NOTE: It is easy to detect double voters, and every...

Former US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton reacts to President Obama's speech on Libya. "I thought it was pathetic," he said.

(CBS/AP) DES MOINES, Iowa - Former United Nations Ambassador John Bolton said Saturday that President Barack Obama isn't qualified to lead the country. Bolton was among the featured speakers at a conference of conservative Republicans in Iowa. Bolton was nominated for the ambassadorship in 2005 by President George W. Bush. Bolton told the crowd that Mr. Obama doesn't care enough about national security issues and doesn't view the world as a threatening place. Bolton also says the U.S. could have made a big difference in Libya, but Mr. Obama couldn't make up his mind on which steps to take.

As Libya's bloody conflict rages on, important lessons for U.S. foreign policy are emerging from the past month's Middle East turmoil. Starting with Tunisia, the Obama administration has seemed repeatedly surprised by anti-regime demonstrations, unsure of the stakes for America and its allies and unprepared conceptually and operationally to deal with the consequences. In Egypt, there was contradictory, unhelpful White House rhetoric when silence would have been prudent - and in Libya, silence when strong American words (and actions) were amply warranted. The truth is, while regional turmoil ignited nearly simultaneously in several countries, the causes of the uprisings require...

Former Indiana Congressman Lee Hamilton (D) and former CENTCOM Commander Anthony Zinni told the Inter Press Service that they were paid to appear at recent events supporting the MEK, an Iranian opposition group currently considered a terrorist organization by the State Department. Hamilton and Zinni are among the many big time former government officials and military leaders who have appeared at recent pro-MEK events sponsored by a group called Executive Action, LLC. (The events true organizers remain unclear, Executive Action's CEO Neil Livingstone would only tell TPM they included Iranian American groups.) Speakers at the events have portrayed the MEK...

A growing number of former U.S. officials — both Republicans and Democrats — have hopped on the bandwagon to demand that the State Department delist the Mujahedin al-Khalq Organization (MKO) from its list of terrorist groups.I consider the MKO a terrorist group for good reason. There is no doubt that the MKO has targeted Americans, and no amount of slick public relations should erase that. During my time in Iran, it was clear that while Iranians respect the United States and have little good to say about their own government, they all detest the MKO.The enemy of my enemy...

"This administration makes the Keystone Cops look organized. "

Iowa Republican Rep. Steve King announced an expanded list of speakers for a conservative conference he'll hold next month in Des Moines to underscore the nascent GOP nomination fight that will unfold in his state over the next year. South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint will keynote the Conservative Principles Conference on March 26, and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum is scheduled to participate as well. Now King has added Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, former Ambassador John Bolton and Herman Cain, all of whom are exploring the 2012 race for the White House. The roster skews heavily to the most conservative...

Former US ambassador John Bolton said in a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference Saturday that Americans should be wary of the fall of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, arguing that it could lead to the country falling in the hands of anti-American Muslim extremists. It is the "responsibility of our government to protect our interests and our values and our friends and our allies," Bolton said. Referencing former President Theodore Roosevelt, he adding that "first and foremost we must make the world safe for ourselves." Mubarak's fall may end up making America less safe, Bolton said, because in a...

Cornered and asked at CPAC if he's running, foreign policy master John Bolton said "I'm thinking about it... and by that I mean I'm thinking about it": that is, he's truly undecided at this point and not merely being coy.  Bolton added that there's a number of factors to consider, and he's in no rush... could even toss his hat in at the end of the year. While noting that he's never run for public office in his life, Bolton stressed that his mission would be to bring the foreign policy debate "front and center"... forcing not only GOP candidates to articulate...

Despite the media's recent focus on Egypt, events in Lebanon may well tell us more about the troubled prospects for Middle Eastern democracy. The fall of Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri's government, replaced by a Hezbollah-dominated coalition, dramatically imperils Beirut's democratic Cedar Revolution. Financed and dominated by Iran, terrorist Hezbollah has consistently refused to disarm and become a legitimate political party. Instead, it enjoys the best of both worlds, contesting elections while retaining the military ability to enforce its will against uncongenial results. History will rightly blame the West for the tragedy of the takeover in Beirut, because of its...

Bolton Says Obama ‘Basically Doesn’t Care About’ Foreign Policy, Compares Him to Dukakis Monday, January 31, 2011 By Christopher Neefus John Bolton (CNSNews.com) - Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton said Friday that President Barack Obama “basically doesn’t care about” foreign affairs, considering them ancillary to his domestic agenda. He said he thinks Obama’s view of the United States’ role in the world is comparable to that of failed presidential candidate Michael Dukakis. “I think the most significant aspect of the president’s approach to foreign and national security policy is that he basically doesn’t care about it,”...