[pjw] NEWS: New Trump Security Advisor Bolton bad news for peace

[Peace and Justice Works]

Hello PJW supporters
You probably know most of this already, but I thought I would forward a 
few items about John Bolton, who was named National Security Advisor by 
President Trump yesterday (effective in early April). The most concerning 
news is in the Win Without War piece, below, which notes that the Senate 
does not have to confirm his appointment.

In a CNN opinion piece (distractingly named "John Bolton's mustache is 
more qualified to be national security adviser than he is"), they note 
Bolton's history under GW Bush and his stances on today's conflicts:

  He has now selected John Bolton, former US ambassador to the United
  Nations. Bolton has distinguished himself as one of America's most
  hawkish and ineffective diplomats for decades. He is known as an
  architect of the Iraq War, an enemy of multilateralism and foe of the
  United Nations, where he served during the George W. Bush administration
  through a recess appointment when he could not win Senate confirmation.
  He is also a harsh critic of the Iran nuclear deal and of North Korea,
  and is seen as someone who might promote conflict in both cases.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/16/opinions/boltons-mustache-more-qualified-to-be-national-security-adviser-rothkopf/index.html

A piece from Stop the War in the UK also elaborates on why Bolton will be 
so bad for peace:

  Any idea that Trump represented a retreat from such intervention should
  be abandoned after this appointment. Bolton will mean more intervention
  and more conflict. With the latest news of a growing trade war between
  the US and China, we are entering a new era of potential conflict.

  Bolton likes to quote the old Roman adage that if you want peace you have
  to prepare for war. Our response should be that if you want peace you
  have to get rid of the warmongers.

http://www.stopwar.org.uk/index.php/news-comment/2939-john-bolton-an-uber-hawk-with-warmongering-ambitions

Win Without War suggests that blocking the Senate confirmations of Mike 
Pompeo (CIA director to become Secretary of State) and Gina Haspel (CIA 
sub-director who helped torture and cover it up) could be a means to slow 
down the war drums. Let's try and see what happens.
dan h
peace and justice works iraq affinity group
  http://winwithoutwar.org/donald-trump-assembling-war-cabinet/
Donald Trump is assembling a war cabinet

    WASHINGTON -- Win Without War Director Stephen Miles released the
    following statement regarding news that John Bolton will become Donald
    Trump's National Security Advisor:

    Donald Trump is showing us who he really is by choosing John Bolton to
    be his national security advisor: a reckless president bent on dragging
    the United States into more wars. It is clear that a President who ran
    for office claiming to oppose the disastrous war in Iraq is now
    assembling a war cabinet to replay that horror show many times over.

    Make no mistake, John Bolton is a dangerous and disgraced warmonger who
    has no business leading our country's national security apparatus.

    On the heels of what looked like a promising push toward diplomacy with
    North Korea, Trump will now seek counsel on national security issues
    from someone who has been calling for war with North Korea for years.
    As recently as last month,he even said the U.S. should launch an
    unprovoked first strike.

    It's fitting, that as we marked this week the 15th anniversary of the
    Iraq war -- a conflict that cost incalculable lives and trillions of
    dollars -- Trump would choose an unrepentant Iraq war cheerleader who
    has also spent years pushing for war with Iran.

    Already, Trump is close to killing the Iran nuclear deal -- one of the
    greatest diplomatic achievements in U.S. history that has blocked
    Iran's pathways to building the bomb . Now, he'll have in Bolton a top
    advisor who earlier this year called for regime change in Iran. And
    just months before the U.S. and its international partners reached a
    deal on Iran's nuclear program, Bolton said that "only military
    action... can accomplish what is required."

    The United States, and indeed the rest of the world, is on a dangerous
    path with this appointment. With war hawk CIA Director Mike Pompeo
    tapped to become the next Secretary of State and Gina Haspel, who
    oversaw key aspects of the Bush-era torture program, nominated to
    replace Pompeo, Trump is sending a clear signal that diplomacy and rule
    of law have no place in his administration.

    Because Bolton's position requires no Congressional consent, his
    appointment makes the Senate's votes on Mike Pompeo and Gina Haspel all
    the more vital. Anyone who cares about our nation's security and hopes
    to stop the President's march to war must block these two crucial
    national security nominations.


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    Win Without War is a diverse network of national organizations working
    for progressive foreign policy in America.