US: Democrats made a last-ditch effort yesterday to stall the nomination of John Bolton as US ambassador to the United Nations, while Republicans pressed ahead for a vote on President George Bush's contentious nominee.
In what could be the final day of senators' lengthy consideration of Mr Bolton, Republicans focused their ire on the United Nations and said the blunt Mr Bolton was the right person to reform it.
Democrats argued that there was evidence that Mr Bolton, the top US diplomat for arms control, tried to exaggerate intelligence assessments of the weapons capacity of several countries.
They said the Senate should stand up to the Bush administration and demand it turn over documents they said would provide insights into whether Mr Bolton tried to influence intelligence assessments of Syria and whether he reviewed communications intercepted by the National Security Agency to exact retribution on his opponents.
"If we can't get those documents," said Senator Christopher Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat, "if we're not going to have the right to see the very things the nominee had a right to see, then I don't think we're being treated as a co-equal branch of government."
Democrats said Mr Bolton's co-workers from the Bush administration had provided information showing that he tried to force intelligence analysts to conform to his hardline views and tried to fire or punish those who refused.
Senator Barbara Boxer, a California Democrat, said Mr Bolton was "hyping up the threat from various countries", but was stopped by higher authorities in the State Department.
"We should not promote someone who has a history of exaggerating threats or at least trying to exaggerate threats that are not supported by intelligence," she said.
Mr Dodd added: "That this individual who engaged in such reprehensible behaviour, in my view, should be given the position of UN ambassador, to represent the United States at this critical hour, I think is a massive mistake."
Just one Republican, Senator George Voinovich of Ohio, openly opposes Mr Bolton. Others have voiced reservations but said they were inclined to back Mr Bush's man.
Democrats said they did not yet know whether they could muster the 41 votes to postpone the confirmation.
Republicans said the administration has provided ample information for the Foreign Relations Committee review since the nomination became bogged down last month.
Senator Judd Gregg, a New Hampshire Republican, said it was "highly inappropriate that we should be holding up his nomination unless someone can show definitively that he has not had the personal integrity or the personal honesty to serve in the position".
Republican senator John Ensign said: "The United Nations is imploding under the weight of its own scandals."