U.N. basher John Bolton has supposedly been talking to the very conserative Senate Republican Steering Group, a shadowy entity that does not appear in the congressional directory and is headed by Senator Jim DeMint. Bolton was there to hammer on the Law of the Sea convention, which is slowly working its way towards ratification.

Today the ultra right wing group America’s Survival ran an anti-treaty ad on a major cable channel.

Why are these unilateralist so upset about a treaty that is supported by President Bush and the Pentagon?

For the very same reason that Citizens for Global Solutions is supporting ratification. Doing so will signal the beginning of a United States swing back towards multilateralism and international law.

If the Senate will not accede to this convention, how can we expect them to support the ratification of the backlog of multilateral treaties waiting for a vote including:, the International Criminal Court treaty, the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, the Women’s Convention (CEDAW), the Rights of the Child, the Biodiversity Treaty, and many others. What will happen when it is time for the Senate to consider the successor to the Kyoto protocol, which runs out in 2012?

Think about it. If a Senate with a Democratic majority can not muster the 66 votes to pass a treaty supported by a Republican president, what is the possibility of doing so under a potential Democratic president who will face much stiffer Republican opposition?

If the U.S, cannot join an agreement supported by environmental groups, petroleum trade associations, peace groups, the Coast Guard, Navy, departments of State, Commerce, and the Interior (just to name a few) – what is the chance that we engage on other agreements?

One senate staffer I talked to recently has been yelling at groups coming to talk with him about climate change. He’s been telling them that he doesn’t want to talk to them unless the first words out of their mouth are “Law of the Sea,” because “if we can’t get this one through, none of the other agreements are going to get through.”

The majority of progressive groups outside of the environmental community are sitting this one out at the moment. I guess they are thinking that although the treaty sets the rules for two thirds of the Earth’s surface, it’s all wet. My hope it they will think again and vigorously support this treaty, if for no other reason than John Bolton opposes it. He knows a good multilateral treaty when he trashes one.

Don Kraus