statecraft or goodwill ambassador

A faction of the US congress is revisiting the idea of ransoming the UN and guide its outreach and peace-keeping initiatives through leveraging, withholding its contribution to the UN operating budget. Although not a very original idea and all parties have not gone without disputes and disagreements, the language of the threat is desperate and uncouth--and highly selective. The UN is not a world-government but rather a mechanism to ensure that no one's sovereignty infringes on the sovereignty of another, and by begrudging its dues and citing certain activities, paints the organization with some monstrous authority it is not laying claim to. Such a proposal, if it goes any further, could only court retribution and could not end well. It is humiliating enough when there is no spirit of cooperation and compromise and budgets are slashed for the arts, science, social services and stabilization in one's own backyard, and the US embassy should not be exporting that sort of ill-will and discouragement. America's balance of influence is waning, especially when exhausted over something as petty as a pre-election competency-hearing and slander, and may very well need some day the support of such institutions to protect it from itself and narrow-interests.