While the New York Times may have come out against John Bolton returning to the UN next year, at least we can say that it's editorial page isn't cracking the whip and keeping all of the papers it owns in line.

In fact, when one looks at the Boston Globe's decision-making on how to cover the Bolton re-nomination on their opinion-editorial pages, you might think that they don't have any standards at all.

What did the Globe do? Publish an op-ed written by a former deputy of Bolton's.

Thomas Boyd, listed as a "a former assistant attorney general and a former deputy to John Bolton," writes an op-ed making all kinds of judgments about what a great job Bolton is doing as the ambassador to the UN. And why is he qualified to do this?

It's not clear. Certainly, we've seen Boyd serve as a character witness in the past - see this NYT piece last year in which he described Bolton's management style and the kind of boss he was.

But Boyd isn't some foreign policy whiz - he worked in the Reagan Justice Department, and since then? Mostly, he's worked as an attorney dealing with the nuts and bolts of business law, according to his bio up at his firm's website. It's undeniable that he did some military service. But what are his metrics for Bolton's success as a diplomat at the UN?

Curiously, Boyd doesn't even mention the words "UN reform," an area where Bolton's failings have been noted at this blog and other places. And, if you would like more of a concept of how clouded his evaluations of Bolton's tenure are by his friendship, look at the last paragraph:

Bolton needs to spend time at the UN, not Capitol Hill, working with Secretary Rice to try to effect a resolution that would help calm the violence in Lebanon, rather than being distracted by spending his time trying to assure that his nomination is allowed a simple up-or-down vote on the Senate floor.

Now, let's compare Boyd's statements about where Bolton spends his time with Barbara Crossette's remarks. Crossette has completed the most even-handed evaluation of Bolton's tenure to date:

Keep Bolton Away from Washington: Bolton has always had close relations with the office of Vice President Dick Cheney, and he apparently uses his frequent trips to Washington to keep those ties strong. His contacts there and on the National Security Council allow him to play a policy role independent of your office. You need to crack down on these extracurricular activities. When he was appointed, you made clear that Bolton would be reporting to the State Department. It didn't go unnoticed that you--and not President Bush--announced his nomination. It's time to turn that symbolism into reality. Whenever possible, keep Bolton consumed with tasks in New York. Limit his testimony to congress and keep him out of National Security Council meetings when you can. His politicking should be in the Delegates' Lounge--not in D.C.

Looks like Bolton doesn't need Senate Democrats to encourage him to spend time in Washington.

The Globe needs to do a better job, and present a more even analysis of Bolton that doesn't simply come from friends of his. They've got at least a month to present the other side of the story - write a letter to the editor encouraging them to do so.