President Bush bypassed Congress to name Jewish philanthropist Sam Fox as U.S. ambassador to Belgium.Bush nominated Fox, 77, of St. Louis, earlier this year, but Democrats protested because Fox had donated $50,000 to the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, a group that claimed during the 2004 presidential elections that Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) had exaggerated his Vietnam War heroics. Fox also led a fund-raising campaign to pay for the recent legal defense of Lewis “Scooter” Libby, a former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney. Bush last week withdrew his nomination of Fox, former head of the Republican Jewish Coalition, when it became clear that he could not muster enough votes in the Senate for approval. But he appointed Fox as ambassador Wednesday while Congress was on spring recess, The New York Times reported. Under terms of the recess appointment, Fox can remain ambassador until the end of Congress’ next session. “This is really now taking the recess appointment vehicle and abusing this beyond anyone’s imagination,” Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), a candidate for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination, told the Times. ”This is a travesty.”
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