As the following editorial published in the Wall Street Journal on 13 December 2001 makes clear, the only reason Amb. Reich has not been on duty before now is because of an ideological vendetta waged against him by Senator Christopher Dodd, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Western Hemisphere Affairs Subcommittee. Even as ominous economic, political and/or strategic developments in Latin American nations like Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Mexico and Peru have demanded expert and competent leadership from the U.S. government, Sen. Dodd has blocked the Reich nomination. Worse yet, he has maliciously sullied the name of the man President Bush knows can provide such leadership while denying Amb. Reich a hearing in which to rebut false charges. The Senator's motivation is transparent: He fears such a hearing would demonstrate to the world that it is Chris Dodd's deplorable record on hemispheric affairs -- not Otto Reich's estimable one -- that should be subjected to critical reviews.
Now that Sen. Dodd and his colleagues have finally left town, Mr. Bush should exercise his constitutional prerogative to make a recess appointment for Ambassador Reich to his State Department post. By so doing, he can simultaneously end a travesty of congressional abuse of power and give the Nation a man whose talents and abilities are more needed with every passing day.
http://64.233.187.104/search?q=cache:n9z4FDKGgskJ:www.centerforsecuritypolicy.org/index.jsp%3Fsection%3Dpapers%26code%3D01-F_86+Janice+O%27Connell+Chris+dodd&hl=en
She demanded that his statement that it was HE who wanted the guy fired be removed from the record!
And he said it was Biden and Dodd's STAFF that is doing all the leaking and smearing!
Thank you!!!
Fox covered this story at the start of "Special Report" today. Reich spoke on camera to reporters after meeting with the Committee today behind closed doors.
Fox showed a female aide to Dodd who sits behind Dodd at Committee meetings. It was very interesting.