In the MSNBC article cited in the Newsletter, no mention is made of important updates in the story, Here's the email I sent him just how - hope he reads it before the show:
I saw in the emailed Countdown newsletter for today that you will be covering the Bolton nomination and the allegations that have surfaced about him. Among these are the story by Melody Townsel, first reported in a letter sent to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and posted by her friend at the blog Daily Kos. I wanted to be sure you had the most recent updates on that story, including the text of a new letter from Ms. Townsel, also sent to the Committee and posted at Daily Kos by Ms. Townsel's friend Amy, known on the Kos board as "amyindallas." (According to earlier posts, she is Amy Boardman Hunt, a legal media consultant in Dallas.) Portions of its contents have already appeared at news sites, but not all of it. I will paste the full text of the new Townsel letter below. In it Ms. Townsel rebuts attempts by Bolton supporters to impugn her credibility. As described in newspaper articles linked to in the Democratic Underground thread I started last night about this update in the story (see below) there are two witnesses who confirm her story about Bolton's bizarre actions in 1994.
Here is the link to Daily Kos and the new Melody Townsel letter, along with an introduction by amyindallas:
http://www.dailykos.com/hotlist/add/2005/4/20/19342/8479/displaystoryI have posted this whole Townsel story in three threads at Democratic Underground. In addition to the information in the opening post, these threads contain a great deal of additional information and links to relevant newspaper and online articles and video clips. Here are the links to the three DU threads, with the one on the NEW LETTER being the THIRD:
1. (thread started April 16)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=1727593#1727621Thread title: From a Kos diary: 'Horrifying, personal John Bolton story"
This thread links to the Kos diary with the original Medody Townsel article and links to many published articles about it and other information.
2. (thread started April 19)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=1404697#Thread title: Delay Is Sought in Vote on U.N. Nominee (NYT update on Bolton)
Links to updated articles and other information.
3. (thread started April 21)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1736102Thread title: NEW MELODY TOWNSEL LETTER rebutting attacks on her credibility re Bolton
Link to Kos page with the new letter as well as to news sites on the story.
I will paste the full text of the new (second) Melody Townsel letter below, prefaced by the introduction written by the Kos diarist amyindallas (Ms. Townsel's friend). The newspaper articles linked to in the third DU thread (see above) cite some of what is referred to in this letter, but not all of it. There is also useful information in the comments at the Kos link, some of which were posted by amyindallas.
Best,
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Nothing Without Hope" at Democratic Underground
--------------------------
http://www.dailykos.com/hotlist/add/2005/4/20/19342/8479/displaystoryMore rebuttal from Melody Townsel re Bolton
Wed Apr 20th, 2005 at 16:03:42 PDT
"For those of you playing along at home, here is the latest with regard to Melody Townsel's allegations re John Bolton. Melody, as you'll recall, is the former U.S. AID worker who had a prolonged run-in with Mr. Bolton in Moscow in 1994. Their conflict was over Melody's complaints regarding a government contractor who Melody alleged was improperly funding and managing the contract in Kyrgystan (sp?).
" Just fair warning here: This can get pretty complicated. Melody's prime complaint about Mr. Bolton is that his legal strategy in 1994 was to claim that Melody was misusing government funds and that she was under investigation by the feds. That was, and is, categorically untrue (evidenced by the fact that she received additional government contracts after Kyrgystan). Now, it seems that the company she originally complained about in 1994 is rising to Mr. Bolton's defense and, not surprisingly, saying, once again, that Melody was guilty of malfeasance.
"Earlier today, the company issued a letter to that effect.
"Melody has already drafted and lodged with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee a response to the company's letter, and I'm sharing it here to help her keep the ongoing he said/she said fair and balanced. She's also working with her attorney to supply this response to the media covering this story:
April 20, 2005
Mr. Brian McKeon
Counsel
US Senate Foreign Relations Committee
Washington, D.C.
Dear Mr. McKeon:
Thanks for forwarding the letter from Mr. Kalotra. As you are aware, my original letter to the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee did not mention IBTCI directly because I did not think the identity of the company was directly relevant. In light of Mr. Kalotra's letter, however, I do feel the need to set the record straight on several points.
The first paragraph of the letter characterizes my report to US AID as a "willful attempt" to take over the contract. This is simply a reiteration of the "conspiracy theory" that was advanced by Mr. Bolton at the time in an effort to silence my criticism. These allegations have never been substantiated in any way.
The second paragraph of the letter claims that Mr. Bolton was not engaged by IBTCI to have "any contact with Ms. Townsel on any issue related to her activities in Kyrgyzstan." This statement is not accurate. Mr. Bolton made numerous statements to and about me in connection with the dispute. Several witnesses can verify this, including Uno Ramat, who has already been interviewed by the committee; Gary Vanderhoof of US AID; and John Johnston of Price Waterhouse. My affidavit will present more detail on Mr. Bolton's conduct during the dispute.
The third paragraph repeats the unsubstantiated charges against me, including an accusation that I "attempted unsuccessfully to charge the U.S. government for disallowable costs." This accusation is not only inaccurate, but manifestly impossible. I never directly submitted costs to the U.S. government, nor did I ever have the authority to do so. Per the practices proscribed by IBTCI upon my arrival in country in late January 1994, I submitted the project's in-country expenses to IBTCI, which would then directly and solely determine which expenses it would attempt to recover from the government. Moreover, Mr. Kalotra's letter also neglects to mention that IBTCI had already hired and directly trained its own local accountant when I joined the project in January of 1994.
Mr. Kalotra appears to be alluding to in-country expenses related to a joint staff retreat arranged by a Price Waterhouse employee, Samantha Ankarra Fuller, for the in-country staffs of all US AID contractors extant within Kyrgyzstan at that time. I did, indeed, incur and submit such expenses to IBTCI, but I never recommended that IBTCI should attempt to recover these expenses from the U.S. government nor, as stated, was I in any position to bill the U.S. government for them.
This unfounded allegation of financial impropriety was, in fact, developed and spread by Mr. Bolton in his efforts to suppress my criticism at the time of IBTCI. It was baseless then, it is baseless now, and my subsequent employment on large, multi-million dollar projects for US AID demonstrates that these allegations were never given credence.
The fourth paragraph asserts that there were no contemporaneous reports of the incidents involving Mr. Bolton. As discussed above, several contemporaneous witnesses can verify Mr. Bolton's involvement in the dispute, including his false accusations against me.
The final paragraph offers Mr. Kalotra's subjective praise of Mr. Bolton. Suffice it to say that I -- and, apparently, many others who have had dealings with Mr. Bolton -- do not share this opinion.
Regards,
Melody Townsel
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