Today, Senate confirmation hearings begin for John Negroponte. If confirmed, he would assume control of the American presence in Iraq on June 30 and would inherit a host of occupation responsibilities and challenges from Paul Bremer. As Peter Ogden writes for American Progress, Negroponte was ambassador to Honduras when "the country was the base for President Reagan's covert war against Nicaragua's Sandinista government." While serving in that position, Negroponte was accused of "covering up abuses by the Honduran military to ensure the flow of U.S. aide from an increasingly skeptical Congress." His current tenure as the U.S. representative to the U.N. has only further undermined his credibility in the international community, especially in regards to Iraq, by leading a diplomatic effort that has been increasingly dismissive of the rest of the world. Other problems: Negroponte doesn't speak Arabic, has never been based in the region and has never been involved in post-conflict reconstruction. American Progress Senior Policy Analyst Michael Pan details ten tough scenarios the Senate should ask Negroponte to consider.
More on The Progress Report's analysis of Negroponte's qualifications for the job.
I'd say this is par for the course, and be very surprised if Negroponte fails to get the confirmation.
....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.
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