Wolfowitz to the World Bank
The news is just breaking that President Bush is nominating Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz to be President of the World Bank. The Washington Post announced it in a brief, fairly straightforward article, and the New York Times covered it in a slightly longer, somewhat negative story.
You can find a very brief summary of information about the World Bank in an earlier post, along with a link to the World Bank website.
The United States, by far the largest contributor, traditionally names the President of the World Bank, and by tradition Europe names the head of the International Monetary Fund. Interestingly, the World Bank is one of those rare international organizations in which the countries providing the most funding have proportionally stronger voices.
A storm is brewing, of course. In particular, anti-American voices in Europe will be in full bellow, and the American left will soil its collective pants in outrage. President Bush could have kept the Europeans and American leftists happy if he had nominated someone more to their liking, such as Ramsey Clark, Paul Krugman, or even Carly Fiorina, the failed and recently fired CEO of Hewlett-Packard. But he didn't. Instead, he named one of the best- qualified people in public life.
Paul Wolfowitz is an exceptionally brilliant scholar. He has successfully managed huge, complex organizations, and he has served both in the State Department and as Ambassador to a nation in the developing world. Yes, he's a political conservative. Did leftists expect a conservative President to nominate one of their favorites? Not only would that expectation be unrealistic, it would further illustrate the left's inability to understand the realities of politics.
I think it's a good move. Paul Wolfowitz will prove to be an effective President of the World Bank, perhaps one of the most effective ever. There are some who will never admit it, of course, because their judgment is so clouded by ideology. Why can't we resurrect the American sense of fair play and give him a chance?
You can find a very brief summary of information about the World Bank in an earlier post, along with a link to the World Bank website.
The United States, by far the largest contributor, traditionally names the President of the World Bank, and by tradition Europe names the head of the International Monetary Fund. Interestingly, the World Bank is one of those rare international organizations in which the countries providing the most funding have proportionally stronger voices.
A storm is brewing, of course. In particular, anti-American voices in Europe will be in full bellow, and the American left will soil its collective pants in outrage. President Bush could have kept the Europeans and American leftists happy if he had nominated someone more to their liking, such as Ramsey Clark, Paul Krugman, or even Carly Fiorina, the failed and recently fired CEO of Hewlett-Packard. But he didn't. Instead, he named one of the best- qualified people in public life.
Paul Wolfowitz is an exceptionally brilliant scholar. He has successfully managed huge, complex organizations, and he has served both in the State Department and as Ambassador to a nation in the developing world. Yes, he's a political conservative. Did leftists expect a conservative President to nominate one of their favorites? Not only would that expectation be unrealistic, it would further illustrate the left's inability to understand the realities of politics.
I think it's a good move. Paul Wolfowitz will prove to be an effective President of the World Bank, perhaps one of the most effective ever. There are some who will never admit it, of course, because their judgment is so clouded by ideology. Why can't we resurrect the American sense of fair play and give him a chance?
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