April 20 (Bloomberg) -- Republican Senator Lincoln Chafee is ``less likely'' to support John Bolton's nomination to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations because of the allegations he mistreated subordinates, a spokesman for Chafee said.

Chafee's vote against Bolton on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, combined with the united opposition of Democrats, would leave Republicans at least one vote short of recommending his nomination to the full Senate.

White House officials said the allegations against Bolton were ``trumped-up'' and part of the ``ugly side of Washington.'' The administration is ``absolutely not'' considering withdrawing his nomination, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.

Bolton, who was nominated by President George W. Bush, is needed at the United Nations as the world body moves forward on reforms, McClellan said. ``He is someone who has a long record of results in getting things done,'' McClellan said. ``And sometimes you get people mad at you when you get things done.''

The Foreign Relations panel yesterday delayed a vote on the nomination and opted to spend more time studying claims he abused subordinates, mishandled intelligence and misled the panel. Republicans put off the vote at least 20 days after Senator George Voinovich, a Republican from Ohio, said he wasn't ready to back Bolton.

Chafee, a Republican from Rhode Island, ``is much less likely'' to support Bolton after allegations arose yesterday about his credibility, Chafee spokesman Stephen Hourahan said today. Before yesterday's session, Chafee said he was likely to back Bolton.

White House Support

Bush administration officials today said support for Bolton hasn't diminished, and the Senate committee should move quickly to approve Bolton.

``I continue to believe John Bolton would be a really outstanding UN permanent representative, ambassador to the United Nations so we'll continue to make the case it ought to be done,'' Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told reporters today on a plane from Moscow to Vilnius, Lithuania.

In an interview with CNN today, Rice said, ``I think we make a mistake if suddenly comments about management style become part of the confirmation process.''

Hagel's Vote

Republicans hold a 10-8 advantage on the committee, meaning a sole defection would produce a tie vote that could block the nomination or send it to the full Senate without recommendation.

Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, another Republican on the committee, yesterday called the allegations against Bolton ``serious'' and said he might not vote for Bolton on the Senate floor.

Mike Buttry, a spokesman for Hagel, didn't return calls for comment today.

Democrats want the committee to take a fresh look at claims Bolton, 56, bullied intelligence analysts who didn't agree with his views, jeopardizing the integrity of U.S. information gathering. Former State Department official Carl Ford last week told the committee that Bolton in 2002 sought to get two intelligence analysts who refused to sign off on a speech he was preparing on Cuba's weapons capability fired.

Sarah Tinsley Demarest, a spokeswoman for Bolton, declined to comment today. Bolton denied last week that he bullied subordinates and said he only sought to have the analysts reassigned because he had lost confidence in them.

CIA Visit

Democrats yesterday also questioned the credibility of Bolton's testimony. Senator Joe Biden of Delaware said he thought Bolton misled the panel when he testified about a visit to Central Intelligence Agency headquarters.

Biden said Bolton's records show he went ``out of his way'' to try to get a CIA analyst removed from his job when he went to the CIA one morning in 2002 before returning to his office. Bolton had said he dropped by the agency on his way home from work in the evening.

The latest allegations about Bolton ``especially the things about his veracity, really hit'' Chafee, Hourahan said. ``He characterized things one way and there were five people in the line of command who saw it another,'' said Hourahan.

Biden last week released a letter from Melody Townsel, a subcontractor for the U.S. Agency for International Development in Kyrgystan. She claimed Bolton had harassed her over a business matter in 1994 when Bolton was a counsel at odds with her on an AID project.

Denied Her Allegation

Edwin Hullander, who was executive vice president of International Business and Technical Consultants Inc., in Vienna, Virginia, which employed Townsel, denied her allegation, saying Bolton and Townsel may have met once in the company's office.

Chafee said today on CNN that he is more concerned with recent events than with those alleged to have happened more than 10 years ago.

Bolton, a Yale-educated lawyer, is undersecretary of State for arms control and international security. He served as assistant secretary of state for international organization affairs from 1989 to 1993.

Bolton would succeed John Danforth, a former Republican U.S. senator from Missouri, who left the UN post in January.

Bolton's defenders say he is a skilled public official who strongly defends U.S. interests. Seven former U.S. secretaries of state and defense, including Henry Kissinger and George Shultz, wrote the committee in support of Bolton, saying ``anyone as energetic and effective as John is bound to encounter those who disagree'' with him.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jeff St.Onge in Washington at jstonge@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: April 20, 2005 18:11 EDT