It's official. The president has predictably bypassed the Senate appointed John Bolton to be UN ambassador.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee reported the nomination to the full Senate without a recommendation after Sen. George Voinovich (R-OH) voiced his opposition to Bolton. The Senate then voted twice against cloture, rejecting his nomination to the high post.

Under the rules of recess appointments, Bolton will serve until January 2007 when a new Congress convenes. Without the Senate's approval, Bolton has been set up to be a particularly weak representative for US interests at the UN.