Reply #8: She's been busy with her letters - I LOVE this one telling Condi Rice

[Nothing Without Hope]

that her order to subordinates to block info to the Senate Foreign Relations committee is UNCONSTITUTIONAL:

HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
SUITE 112
WASHINGTON, DC 20510-0505
[phone]
http://boxer.senate.gov/contact

BARBARA BOXER
CALIFORNIA
FOREIGN RELATIONS

April 20, 2005

The Honorable Condoleezza Rice
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State
2201 C StreetNW
Washington, DC 20520

Dear Secretary Rice:

According to reports in today's WashingtonPost, you have told senior members
of your staff that you do not want "any information coming out of the department that
could adversely affect the nomination" of John Bolton to be U.S. Ambassador to the
United Nations. I hope this report is untrue.

The purpose of this letter is to ask you to issue an instruction to your department
stating that they will cooperate with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's bipartisan
investigation of John Bolton.

I am sure you are aware that Article 2, Section 2 of the Constitution states that the
President is to appoint Ambassadors "by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate."
As such, the Senate is fully vested with the authority to investigate executive nominations
to ensure that they are qualified in terms of experience, temperament, and conduct. In
addition, paragraph 1 of Rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate authorizes
Committees "to require by subpoena or otherwise the attendance of such witnesses and
the production of such correspondence, books, papers, and documents." The Supreme
Court has upheld this authority, calling it, "an essential and appropriate auxiliary to the
legislative function."

If you have, in fact, instructed your staff or any other employee of the federal
government not to cooperate with this important investigation, I urge you to act
immediately to reverse such course.

I look forward to your immediate favorable response.

Sincerely,
Barbara Boxer
United States Senator