Friday, April 13, 2007

No Crying Over Wolfowitz

One of the chief neo-cons is in big trouble and it doesn't look like the President can save this loyalist. After George forced Paul Wolfowitz into the top position at the World Bank his actions (that are of a typical neo-con) got him in trouble with the board members and it looks like they want him out of there.

If you had heard that he would teach poor nations that are mired in corruption a lesson by simply withholding their development funds you would be correct. If you think that's the reason for his imminent ouster you would be wrong. It seems like Wolfie is in hot water because of sex and the favor$ that were fostered because of the relationship he had with Shaha Riza .

From the BBC:

Mr Wolfowitz has faced calls for his resignation over the promotion and pay of an ex-colleague with whom he is romantically involved.

He has apologised for his involvement in the negotiations and said he will accept any decision taken by the board.

Mr Wolfowitz's partner, Shaha Riza, was moved to the state department when he took the World Bank's top job in 2005.

The promotion and pay rise that came with her move has attracted strong criticism from staff within the organisation where Mr Wolfowitz is leading an anti-corruption drive.


The most hysterical aspect of this story is the rank hypocrisy of it. Wolfowitz was big on fighting corruption in developing nations. He went so far as to say that democracy can not thrive without a clean government. Then he turns around and does things that would make the thugs in the developing nations proud. Ms. Riza received a $60,000 plus raise for her move from the World Bank to the State Department. That is salary is $7,000 higher than Secretary of State Condi gets.

Well the people at the Bank didn't take the news too lightly. They say that their trust of the man is damaged and they want him out. Too bad for Paul the decision is up to the board and not the President. Loyalty isn't going to save him here. The sad thing is that his policy decisions have also angered many and went against the mission of the World Bank. Though that apparently did not matter until the issue of sex and favors came into play.