In a few weeks, Rep. Henry Hyde (R-Ill.), the chairman of the House International Relations Committee who as Judiciary Committee chief wielded the gavel during President Clinton's impeachment, will announce that he will not seek another term.
The public position of Hyde, 80, an icon of the conservative movement, is that he will make up his mind for sure in April. But I am told he has decided to retire and is unlikely to reverse course.
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Hyde is making United Nations reform and accountability a priority this year and had a behind-the-scenes role in promoting John Bolton to become the new U.N. ambassador, appointed by President Bush last week.
To make sure U.N. critic Bolton got the nomination, Hyde made calls to White House chief of staff Andy Card for Bolton and is pushing his Senate counterpart, Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, to swiftly confirm Bolton, who is in the cross hairs of the Democrats.
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