Donald
Trump’s choice for United Nations ambassador, South Carolina Governor Nikki
Haley, voiced uncertainty (and in doing so, aligned herself with
Trump) regarding the value of the U.N. during her confirmation hearing on
Wednesday. But Haley said she would champion American interests when it comes
to voting and condemned the Obama administration’s handling of issues with
Israel.
Haley is not
the first Trump appointee who has been at odds with the organization they are
going to be a part of. Trump’s choice to head the Environmental Protection
Agency, Scott Pruitt, once sued the EPA as Oklahoma attorney general,
and education secretary nominee Betsy DeVos appears to have a lack of
knowledge on public education issues. Haley’s hearing hasn’t been too
contentious, but she’s bucking a trend too.
Haley’s main
complaint with the U.N. stems from it being “often at odds with
American national interests and American taxpayers.” She went on to express
skepticism about the U.N.’s intentions for U.S. interests by taking a page out
of her future boss Trump’s playbook and saying we are not seeing a return
on investment:
“We
contribute 22 percent of the U.N.’s budget, far more than any other country. We
are a generous nation. But we must ask ourselves what good is being
accomplished by this disproportionate contribution. Are we getting what we pay
for?” Haley did say she will take an active role in her position, putting U.S.
interests first, and she took a shot at the Obama administration’s
handling of Israel:
“I will not
go to New York and abstain when the U.N. seeks to create an international
environment that encourages boycotts of Israel. I will never abstain when the
United Nations takes any action that comes in direct conflict with the
interests and values of the United States.” Haley’s statements followed the
recent U.S. decision to abstain in voting on a U.N. resolution that
denounced Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Outgoing
Secretary of State John Kerry had defended the vote in December. At the time,
he said, “The only way to achieve a just and lasting peace between Israelis and
Palestinians,” which is in “serious jeopardy.”
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