Your article “Kerry’s closeness to Obama draws fire” (Page A1, June 24) criticizes Senator John F. Kerry’s oversight of Afghanistan as chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. The committee has held more than two-dozen hearings and briefings on the war, yet the Globe relies primarily on criticism from former Ron Paul adviser Bruce Fein, who has also advocated the impeachment of Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama and Vice President Dick Cheney. He is hardly a credible source.
The story also mentions criticism of the committee’s lack of oversight of the use of lethal force. Kerry chaired a hearing on the War Powers Resolution, the committee’s first since 1977, and another on the use of force in Libya, and will soon hold a third hearing examining War Powers.
The story also suggests Kerry has not been “sufficiently critical” of the Obama administration. Yet it fails to mention his independence from the administration on two pivotal issues: Kerry’s early advocacy of a no-fly zone and military action to protect civilians in Libya, and his early call for Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s resignation.
Criticism of elected officials comes with the territory, but it should be fair, and Globe readers deserve to know more about the background of those mounting the charges.