Reid on Bolton Nomination

From kos:

REID FLOOR STATEMENT ON BOLTON NOMINATION
Remarks as prepared:

Yesterday morning I came to the floor to provide an update on the status of the Bolton nomination. As I said then and I repeat now, Senate Democrats have had a clear and consistent position on this matter: If the Administration works in good faith to give the Senate the information it requires, Senate Democrats are ready to immediately give this nomination an up or down vote.

We are not going on a fishing expedition here. Democrats are seeking clearly defined and specific information about two very important issues that bear directly on John Bolton's fitness to represent this great country at the United Nations:

Did Mr. Bolton attempt to exaggerate what Congress and the American people would be told about Syria's alleged WMD capabilities?

Did Mr. Bolton use, and perhaps misuse, highly classified intelligence intercepts to spy on bureaucratic rivals who disagreed with his views or for other inappropriate purposes?

At the time I made those remarks, sadly, the Administration and Senate Republicans had taken the position for the past month or more that nothing needed to be provided to the Senate on either of these issues.

Last evening the Chairman of the Intelligence came to the floor to announce that he had attempted, "one last good faith effort to alleviate [Senate Democratic] concerns." These questions were directed to a member of the Intelligence Committee or a member of the Armed Services Committee. They were directed at the White House.

Mr. President, let's take a look at the Chairman's efforts. They completely ignored one of the two issues on which we are seeking further clarification, namely whether Bolton attempted to exaggerate what Congress and the American people would be told about Syria's alleged WMD capabilities.

Let me remind my colleagues that this is no small matter. Concerns about this Administration hyping intelligence cannot be dismissed lightly. U.S. troops are fighting in Iraq today largely because this Administration told the Congress and the American people that Iraq not only possessed stockpiles of WMD but was also capable of using them against us and our allies.

Subsequently, we have learned that the Administration's own investigator concluded Iraq did not possess either the stockpiles or the means of delivery. And just as importantly, there are a series of unanswered questions about whether senior officials in this Administration dramatically and intentionally hyped this threat to justify their desire to invade Iraq.

So Mr. President you can see why we believe it is no small matter for us to learn whether Mr. Bolton was a party to other efforts to hype intelligence.

Let's be clear about what is happening in Washington and the Senate today. We have a White House that continues to drive a radical agenda, determined to consolidate its power and abuse it when necessary to push its unpopular policies. This disagreement over the Bolton nomination is not about partisan politics, ideology, or even reform at the United Nations. It is about whether we permit this Administration yet again to walk roughshod over the Constitution and our duty as Senators to ensure that our country is represented by qualified and ethical individuals.

...
So I end as I began, if this Administration - like previous Administration - respects the requests of the Senate, we will immediately move to grant Bolton an up or down vote. I stand by that pledge today.