Brownback said the GOP wants answers about Hill's role in the talks that led up to North Korea's rocket launch over the weekend. Reid and Kerry have implored the Senate to treat Hill's nomination specially. Kerry, in particular, has said that Hill's nomination would send a critical message overseas about U.S. intent. "Our capacity to get the success we want is political reconciliation," Kerry said in a statement, noting that U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker has recently been ill. "He's put enormous energy into this effort, and our next two weeks can make a difference." "My hope would be that we would be able to free him up," Kerry said. "It's a terrible message to send." Christopher R. Hill, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs and former U.S. ambassador to South Korea, served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Cameroon.
Christopher Hill's nomination as ambassador to Iraq tops post-recess agenda
Iraq nomination tops post-recess agenda
By J. Taylor Rushing
Posted: 04/05/09 07:32 PM [ET]
Senate Democrats face a hurdle when they return to Capitol Hill after recess — Christopher Hill's nomination as ambassador to Iraq.
Republican oppose Hill's confirmation, and it was left undone when the Senate bolted town last week But it wasn't far from the minds of Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-Mass.).
The majority leader warned the Senate to expect a cloture vote right away on Monday, April 20.
"It's hard to comprehend," Reid said. "Give this some thought. How does this look? It doesn't look very good... I think it's unfortunate because there are a lot of other things we could work on." But a leading GOP critic, Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.), said the GOP has "serious questions" about Hill and how he will perform in Baghdad.
"A number of us on our side have serious questions about Ambassador Hill, how he conducted himself in the last assignment," Brownback said on the Senate floor on Thursday night. "We have serious reservations about his position in going to (Iraq). And I think this will be a good period of time for us to get some of these questions answered from the State Department."
Specifically, Brownback said the GOP wants answers about Hill's role in the talks that led up to North Korea's rocket launch over the weekend.
Reid and Kerry have implored the Senate to treat Hill's nomination specially. Kerry, in particular, has said that Hill's nomination would send a critical message overseas about U.S. intent.
"Our capacity to get the success we want is political reconciliation," Kerry said in a statement, noting that U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker has recently been ill. "He's put enormous energy into this effort, and our next two weeks can make a difference."
"My hope would be that we would be able to free him up," Kerry said. "It's a terrible message to send."
Crocker issued a statement saying that the U.S. has endorsed all it can provide.
"It really handicaps our capacity to maximize our efforts in a war," Brownback said Sunday through the U.S. State Department. "If we're going to treat a U.S. war treaty seriously, we ought to treat this U.S. Ambassador to Iraq seriously."
