Here we go again:
The Bush administration moved on Wednesday to confront the Republican leadership in the House by opposing a bill that would withhold half the American dues to the United Nations unless it enacted several budget and management changes.
In a separate development, the administration signaled a shift in its opposition to a broad expansion of the United Nations Security Council, saying it was willing to add two permanent members to the council, one of them Japan. An administration official indicated that the other should come from the developing world.
State Department officials formally conveyed the administration’s opposition to withholding dues to Capitol Hill on Wednesday, one day ahead of a scheduled House vote on the measure, which is popular among conservatives. The bill, backed by the House speaker, J. Dennis Hastert, is considered likely to pass but its prospects are less certain in the Senate in light of outright administration opposition.
The administration had previously indicated only its uneasiness with the bill’s position on withholding dues, which total about $400 million a year, hoping to get the provision quietly deleted.
In an interview, R. Nicholas Burns under secretary of state for political affairs, said: “We are the founder of the U.N. We’re the host country of the U.N. We’re the leading contributor to the U.N. We don’t want to put ourselves in a position where the United States is withholding 50 percent of the American contributions to the U.N. system.”
Ahh, the annual UN ritual.
Rick
Dear me, no. We mustn’t do that. Feh!
Cordially…
Mr Furious
Just write the damn check. Besides, the Administration’s gonna need the UN again, when they go through the song-and-dance of resolutions fro Iran…Just consider the $400 mil a retainer for the eventual invasion.
p.lukasiak
$400 million? Is that all? That’s about the same amount we are spending in Iraq and Afghanistan each and every day….
And the wingnuts are worried about a lousy $400 million dollars?
The Disenfranchised Voter
Well, the Bush Administration finally did the right thing for once. Good for them.
Stormy70
The UN needs to be reformed, and Japan and India added as permanent members. Then, every country that is not a democracy should be shown the door. Eff, em. Child-raping enabling UN leadership should be run out on a rail, as well.
Kimmitt
Since one of the main purposes of the UN is to allow for peaceful resolution of conflicts, it seems somewhat shortsighted to kick out the folks we expect to have conflicts with.
Rick
The UN never resolves anything, except where to dine, and that Zionism is racism.
Cordially…
wild bird
We need to get our selves out of the UN and get the UN out of america entirly we need to cut the UN off compltetly and say NO MORE TO THE UN HOGS