World Bank Hearts Corruption

Anyone watching the current World Bank witch hunt regarding Wolfowitz has to know what's really going on there. They're so steeped in and comfortable with inefficiency and corruption, they'll go to any lengths to get him out. It's disgraceful, particularly as we throw so much money down that rat hole.

Wolfowitz didn't help himself much by leaving himself open to the charges in the first place. It isn't like he should be on anyone's favorite list. But between this issue and the UN, it's about time America stops letting a bunch of corrupt international bureaucrats push us around.

Start here with Clarice Feldman's piece, see that and some of the links. Even Hitchens knows what garbage this is.

Anyone who knows anything about this also knows that it is part of a power play by certain European and Asian interests at the bank to challenge American dominance of the institution. Two previous managing directors, Shengman Zhang and Caio Koch-Weser, were allowed to have their spouses working there without any demur. Riza's job did not require her to report to the office of the president in any case. Wolfowitz nonetheless offered to sign a statement, as soon as he was appointed, recusing himself from any involvement in her work. It was certain bank high-ups who laid the trap for him by insisting that she lose her post and who have now sprung the trap by blaming him for following their well-documented recommendation that she be compensated for this unfairness.

Comments

[Buzzy]

OK OK OK, I get it, Wolfie was up front and honest about his GF all the while and the World Bank is a pit of vipers. What I don't understand is if Wolfie knew they'd be gunning for him why in the Hell did he make it so damned easy for them? Sorry but these NeoCons all seem to be FUBAR and don't seem to have much shelf life due to it.

[seekeronos]

If we _really_ had any sense about this, we wouldn't be wasting our time or money with the WB. Or the UN (that toothless, cash-sucking parasite) either, for that matter.

What would better serve our purposes than the mostly socialistic and aspiring to be the Ultimate Nanny (U.N.) would be an "Anglophone Organization" that would line up on the better interests of the English-speaking world (USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK, and possibly S. Africa as an observer)

[Fred Beloit]

I'm afraid I disagree with my good friend Buzzy on this one. The evidence makes a good case that Wolf did know that they would be gunning for him and did take steps to make it hard for them to pin teacher's pet on his girl friend and favoritism on him. It is just that the bastardos at the WB simply ignore the evidence.

[Phoenix]

"Wolfowitz didn't help himself much by leaving himself open to the charges in the first place."

"What I don't understand is if Wolfie knew they'd be gunning for him why in the Hell did he make it so damned easy for them?

Damn shame when honesty is a natural response in an individual who has a highly developed sense of ethics, isn't it?

Sad, as well, that two conservative, honest individuals here actually utter these remarks as if Wolfowitz' behavior was something out of the ordinary. In another time and place, the response would be utter outrage. Heh... now that I think on it, Wolfowitz's doing the right thing is 'out of the ordinary'.

[daveinboca]

This is a putsch by the corrupt mandarinate who brought us Oil-for-food, putrid types like Mark Malloch Brown whose real home should be behind bars. The World Bank is a sinkhole of corruption and crony socialism.

[templar knight]

What you people don't understand is...IOKIALDI!!!!! Wolfie thought the liberals and internationalists would hesitate because they had done the same damn thing, and didn't figure on the utter hypocrisy of the Left. Wolfie doesn't use good judgment, and he should have known better.

And I really like Zif's idea. An organization built upon honesty and decency. What a novel idea, Ziffy.

[templar knight]

Seek, you have my permission to beat me with a stick. I apologize.

[southdakotaboy]

Proof of the coruption of those the left supports is immaterial anymore. We need to realize that the left is taking a page straight out of G. Orwell's 1984 with the whole double speak. Bad is good and good is bad kind of thing. The fact is the right needs to get better at nailing these things down and letting the American people know about them. Our spearkers when being interviewed need to just start talking about the things that we want to get out. To hell with answering the biased lib medias questions. Like that joke of a debate where Chris ask what each candidate hated most about America, they should have gone off on examples of democratic coruption. Or they could have talked about the media double standards. The left never gives a straight answer and gets away with it.

[Phoenix]

SDB - In other words - PC.

Bush is impervious to public opinion and BDS. Wouldn't it be great if just once he addressed it with an in-your-face remark. I wish. Heck, I think half the BDS is that his opposition can't get to him. It drives people nuts when they can't get a rise out of someone. Ruins their game.

[nowinkger]

Brought to you by the "War is Peace" team.

Yup, its the lefties that are using Orwellian doublespeak. Certainly calling the GenCon's 'quaint' then saying that we can abide by them or not at the direction of the president, then saying we "do" abide by them but need immunity in case we don't is clear truthtelling. Same with torture: we don't torture, but we can if we want to! Abortion causes breast cancer! Alberto Gonzales isn't an incompetant liar, he 'now knows he met with the President' he's only an absent minded fool.

Abortion causes breast cancer!
Abstinance Only Education Works, the studies are biased! There WERE WMD in Iraq!
The surge is working!
Tax cuts for the rich help the poor!
Global warming is a lie!

The right is already quite adept at Orwellian doublespeak, your problem is you don't yet control the media so are confronted with REALITY over and over again and REALITY almost always is in conflict with your talking points.

Poor wingers.

[Phoenix]

Hah.... Just in time.

Check this out: http://www.theothersideofkim.com/index.php/tos/single/10583/

(Wishful thinking, of course, but right on target.)

[Zifnab]

So, here's my question. If the WB is so horribly corrupt and rife with scandal, why did we make Wolfie its President? Why didn't the President move with his majorities in both Houses of Congress to withdraw from the WB and the UN years ago?

Talk about sour grapes. While the Republicans are running the joint, the WB is the best thing since sliced bread and isn't it wonderful all the charitable work the organization does. But when Bush's top pick gets shown the door, suddenly we discover the organization is a giant cesspool of money-whoring nepotistic hacks. What a flip-flop! Would you say Bush was for the World Bank before he was against it?

[Phoenix]

Try it this way, Zif. (Using your own words with some rearrangement.)

They made Wolfowitz the president of the WB because it was so horribly corrupt and rife with scandal.

As far as why we haven't dumped the WB... Damn good question. If they actually force Wolfowitz out, we should end it.

As for your last paragraph, did you spend the night with Amber-Autumn-Moonbeam last night? Your talking points seem kind of heated and lathered. :)

[Capitalist Infidel]

Heres a question for the ages, who hates America more, liberals or europeans?

[nowingker]

Absolutely. We should most definitely pull out of the World Bank! Why should the United States be bothered with any international poverty relief efforts that generate good will and soft power?? Stupid.

Bush is going to get just what he asked for in my opinion. Instead of Wolfowitz resigning 'for the good of the WB' he just may force the board to either give him a vote of no confidence. Fucking Brilliant! Let's alienate our European and Asian allies even more over a worthless POS always wrong hack like Paul Wolfowitz.

Next Up: Wolfowitz charges anti semitism.

Since it appears that the rest of the WB donors already don't like the idea of letting the US choose the president of the WB, by all means, we should force a useless showdown when the conclusion is foregone: The WB is not going to let Wolfowtiz stay until his term is up in 2010.

Surge on fools.

[Zifnab]

"They made Wolfowitz the president of the WB because it was so horribly corrupt and rife with scandal."

Except, they didn't. They made him the President, formally, to fight corruption in third-world countries using the WB loans as an incentive to clean up. You might have Wolfie confused with everyone's favorite UN Ambassador Mustash John Bolton who was sent in to the United Nations, formally, to clean up the corruption the Bush Administration believed existed.

Allegations of corruption at the World Bank haven't started flying hot and heavy (with, btw, absolutely no evidence to support them) until Wolfowitz himself got in trouble.

This still doesn't explain why Bush appointed Wolfie President of the organization when teh WB had such a longtime history of corruption, itself. Why not just withdraw? Why not channel our money and influence elsewhere? You still haven't answered that question.

[Jerry Falwell]

Farewell strident, righteous cons. I have died for your sins. Fight the gays and the ACLU.

[southdakotaboy]

Because the left in this country always screams bloody murder when we try and work outside of the international community. They say we are acting unilaterally, that we must work inside of existing organizations. The world bank is corupt, always has been corupt and always will be corupt as long as we let it slide for political reasons. We need to get out of it and start our own game.
I still think we should just annouce to the world that we will pull everything back to our own borders, seal them up tight for about six months and then deal with who ever is left standing. We just need to get the missle defense shield up first.

[nowingker]

Absolutely, what we need is MORE unilateral action. For goodness sakes, the Russians are only hinting that the Bush regime is acting like Nazi Germany before WWII -- I guess that makes Putin a lefty Democrat as well:)

Bring back the cold war! Let's liberate Moscow. Kick the UN out of New York, withdraw from the World Bank, IMF and NATO.

You guys are so ignorant you don't even understand what is being alleged. Nobody is alleging that the World Bank is corrupt, the issue is that the World Bank turns a BLIND EYE to corruption in the countries they give money to, this was the 'corruption' Wolfie was going to exterminate.

Well, unless of course the country was a Friend of Bush, in which case, no problemo. That's why Wolfie wanted to open a WB office in Baghdad...clearly 3+ billion in American cash going down the rabbit hole, plus billions more lost to fraud wasn't enough, he wanted to get the WB in on the action.

[charles]

could you leftists be any more transparent? the kneejerk autocontrarian bds is flowing like the niagra

doesn't matter what it is or how long it's been going on, if bushs name is attached to it, it's all brand new and double plus ungood

as far as the un, where's all the leftists complaining about oil for food, rampant pedophilia, rape and sexual misconduct and plain old every day ordinary blatant corruption?

oh that's right, if it doesn't involve bush you'll just ignore it and move on to other things

like the russians - you have got to be attempting humor there right, and what's this i see "nazis"
oh yeah, it's all about the nazis

why does the left love them so, it's old history but the name is always in your mouths - disgusting

[nowingker]

Another favorite of the wingers the old switcherooni.

But, but, but, the United Nations is corrupt, so XYZ doesn't matter.

The United Nations has zero to do with Bush's war in Iraq or any of the other examples of incompetance and corruption including whether or not Wolfowitz is fit to lead the World Bank.

As far as the Russians, Putin said it, I didn't. It appears to have been a significant enough statement that lil ole Condi made her own public statement that the US doesn't want to go back to the Cold War days.

[charles]

you brought up the un fucko

and xyz does matter except to the left, if you can't hang a george on it you're not interested

the largesse of the american citizens has gone way too far, we should pull back internationally and focus more on making the greatest country on the planet even greater,maybe we can get two tv.s each, or four cars

and what a surprise putin behaving badly, who would have ever thought that might happen

but you'll use the old kgb warhorse to take sides now won't you?

all you guys ever do is come in here to spread some hate around

try this, there was a supposed first hundred hours, and a (LOL)"mandate" and an end to the culture of corruption, k street and ear marks

the dems were going to come in and show every one how the country could be run

well, it's the middle of may - name anything, that's right anything that the new and better overlords have accomplished

should be a whole list right?

i'd be content with one good one, just one - name it

[charles]

oh, nice "lil ole condi" - you're a racist a misogynist, and probably a nazi lover

because if you didn't love the nazis you probably wouldn't think about them so much or bring them up in conversation so often

disgusting

[nowingker]

Condoliza Rice: Incompetant Secretary of State
Paul Wolfowitz: Incompetant World Bank President/Deputy DOD secretary
Donald Rumsfeld: Incompetant Secretary of Defense
Alberto Gonzales: Incompetant Attorney General
Harriet Meiers: Incompetant White House Counsel
Douglas Feith: Incompetant DOD hack

It isn't my fault no one around Bush is capable of doing their job.

[nowingker]

I forgot to add the former FDA chief, also incompetant.
The current EPA chief, incompetant.
The former head of DHHS family plannning center, incompetant
"Brownie" over at FEMA, incompetant
Paul Bremmer, incompetant

[charles]

"incompetent" hmmph

an easy word for monday morning quarterbacks

you should be proud of our country that a brilliant black woman is in a high govt position

but you're a racist, and a nazi lover

so what have the dems accomplished? still waiting because i can't identify anything - enlighten me

maybe you can google it

[templar knight]

Nowinger, I have a few things to say:

Bill Clinton
Janet Reno
Mike Espy
Ronald H Brown
Henry Cisneros
The goofy black woman who was the surgeon general,

and these are the ones who come to mind. I'm absolutely sure I could come up with many, many more. All totally and completely incompetant.

[charles]

hey templar, howdy

notice what he doesn't answer, disgusting racist he is

hope you're having a perfect day

[nowingker]

I really don't think you can make a case for Bill Clinton being 'incompetant'..he may have been unscrupulous, opportunistic, unprincipled, even immoral, but he wasn't incompetant, not by a long shot.

Janet Reno: yup.
Henry Cisneros: yup.
Ron Brown: not sure/don't think so
Don't remember the black woman who was surgeon general.

Madeline Albright, also incompetant as Sec. of State

It's so hilarious when the white, Christian, woman hating, minority hating, immigrant hating losers call liberals 'racists'...I guess Charles should have added "Nah Nah Nah" to the end of his post.

[southdakotaboy]

Lets talk about how the newest Gallup poll has the Dems with much lower poll numbers than Bush. Lets talk about the fact that only about 35% of Dems approve of their own party. Lets talk about the fact that Bush's numbers have been slowly climbing up from record lows while the Dems have done nothing but head down.
I said it befor and I will say it again people didn't vote for Dems they voted to punish Republicans. The Dems do not have any slack witht the American people none at all.

[nowingker]

Right on cue, the talking point of the day: Gallop Poll.

Of course the truth of the poll is mis-stated, surprise, surprise.

Last I looked Bush was hovering near Harry Truman's record low with no sign of improvemnet.

Lie, lie, lie.

Why do you nuts think that LYING is going to fix all your problems? Can't you see that it has been six years of lying that got you into this mess?

[BARRASSO]

Jerry Fallwell is posting after death, boy you must have been a closet homosexual otherwise god wouldn't have killed you.

[charles]

"It's so hilarious when the white, Christian, woman hating, minority hating, immigrant hating losers call liberals 'racists'...I guess Charles should have added "Nah Nah Nah" to the end of his post."

illegal lawbreaking esl immigrants i can live without, as far as the rest it's just the faulty clairvoyance of the left in effect again

so far all you're close with is the white part

there is nothing i have ever posted here that demonstrates the other things you have accused me of

either quote me or quit your lying

yet today alone the have brought up the nazis and denigrated condleeza rice (whom you should be exceedingly proud of)

but instead denigrated her to make a cheap political point

so when i say you are racist i can easily prove it

and still can't answer the original question can you?

you've.got.nothing. nya,nya,nya-------- asshole

[southdakotaboy]

Hey nowingker what in my post is untrue? Nothing the poll says what it says and you just don't like it. That does not make it or me a lier.
Lefties were always quick to point out how they had a mandate when the polls showed good numbers for them, now that they don't well then we must not look at or pay attention to the polls anymore. You guys have nothing and are nothing. In 2006 the people will throw you out just as fast as they put you in and it will be along time before you ever get let back in.

[templar knight]

Top of the day, Charles! And it is perfect. I am off this week, and will be going to Magnolia, Arkansas to participate in the World Championship Steak Cookoff. This is the third year we have gone there, I think it is a part of the Magnolia Blossom Festival and Art Show. This is my favorite festival, and we love to compete. And the steaks are absolutely the best. Each contestant is required to cook 100 steaks, and over 3000 steaks are made available to the public @ 13.oo ea. Some of the best eating ever, but it is a dry county. No beer. Oh, well, you can't have everything.

[nowinkger]

Hope springs eternal as they say.

Keep dreaming about the GOP taking over again and the Dems being a permanent majority. Ain't going to happen.

The country is sick of the lying, the bribes, the fake morality and hypocracy, the pure imcompetance and the Iraq debacle.

[charles]

the country wants to know what the dems have accomplished so far

being a big fan of them and all that, it should be easy for you to give us a little pep rally

tell us what they have done and why we should support them

or is it nothing but monday morning quarterbacking and bds

sdb - i think polls suck no matter who's horn they're tootin

but i see your point, it's funny how the "loyal opposition" love polls and will quote them anytime the breeze blows their way

in the other direction,,,,haha,,,,,,not so much

[charles]

i don't drink often, but when i do it's beer or bourbon, sounds like a good time

too bad i'm all the way up here in nyc - i'd love to be there

i got done early today, everyone was out so i got a ton of stuff done already, going out to mow the back 40 now,heh

check on you later

[nowingker]

The time to evaluate the Dem Congress is in 08, since you wingers have been asking about 'progress' since Jaunary, it's clearly another in your long line of attack tactics to take the focus off of the many failures of George Bush.

I am happy to see hearings on turning DOJ into a dirty tricks patrol for the GOP and to see the Dems taking their constitutional duty to oversee war seriously for a change.

I'm sure this pales in comparison to the Republican's convening an emergency session about a blind, brain dead woman in Florida. Now that's an accomplishment to be proud of!

[charles]

hahahahahahahaha!!

all you've got is bds

"since you wingers have been asking about 'progress' since Jaunary"

you've had 5 months and all day to come up with something

why don't you tell me about those first hundred hours miss nancy had touted from coast to coast?

educate me about the "mandate"

prove what a political sharpshooter you are,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,whatsamatta no ammo?

can't answer the question?

you've.got.nothing.but.bds

nyah,nyah,nyah - you suck

going to finish up outside now

[Zifnab]

"Because the left in this country always screams bloody murder when we try and work outside of the international community. They say we are acting unilaterally, that we must work inside of existing organizations. The world bank is corupt, always has been corupt and always will be corupt as long as we let it slide for political reasons. We need to get out of it and start our own game."

Yes, yes. And according to you guys we also need to ban abortion, "reform" social security, and make gays and flag burning illegal. But somehow Republicans never get around to it.

Does the left really scream bloody murder, or are the Republican legislators simply too ham-handed and sloppy to get your precious legislation passed? Or perhaps they really don't care, and like Duke Cunningham and Bob Ney they're all just in it for the money? But, that's impossible, because if the Republican Congresscritters were just trying to milk our country's treasury like a fat cow, that would imply it is the R-Congressmen who are corrupt. Which makes allegations of corruption in the WB seem a bit silly.

Perhaps Bush and Co. could actually go about filing charges against the crooks in the WB. Perhaps they could make a case against the World Bankers like the board has made against Wolfowitz. Perhaps, but I doubt it. With the current AG scandal boiling over, this administration seems to have lost a great deal of credibility when it comes to justice and impartical investigation.

[nowingker]

The thing that amazes me over and over is their stupidity. Wolfowitz has been a goner ever since the two officials contradicted his account of what he did. Jesus Christ, the EU voted against him!

What is the point of expending political capital on a lost cause? There is no way Wolfowitz is going to serve until 2010, the board will fire him first.

What is the point of fighting to the bitter end, including whining about a 'smear' campaign and continuing to change your story, making yourself out to be even more of a liar at the end than at the beginning?

What could Bush possibly hope to gain by having Wolfie fight to the death? The directors are done with him. The staff are in outright revolt, wearing blue ribbons to show they want him to leave.

I've never seen any administration so tone deaf and that literally REFUSED to learn from past mistakes.

And yeah, I eagerly await Wolfowitz's charges of corruption at the World Bank, his documentation and his proof of same, but I won't hold my breath.

[Robert]

southdakotaboy,

Stop with the projection please!!

[charles]

he can't answer but can go back on topic

hmmmmm, interesting - when does a leftist go on topic around here?

and by going back on topic i mean displaying more bds than a barrel of monkies

so, i take it you disagree with ms, feldman, you did read her article right?

or maybe mr hitchens, he's said stuff you could agree with no?

after all he's a leftist and an atheist, you admire that right?

he's also a gifted journalist with an impressive command of the english language, who is well worth reading for that fact alone

so tell me oh sufferer of bds

what have the dems accomplished other than forcing me to stare up waxmans ugly nostrils on cspan?

i wish they would pixilate those astoundingly ginormous caverns of porcine proportions, i feel bad for the guy

and for me,,,,,,,,,

you have the rest of the night to ignore the question, i'll be back

[bloodrage bob]

so noyyyinger blithely tells us that bubba "wasn't incompetent", despite hand-picking a cabinet of world-class fuckups that made larry, moe & curly look downright statesmanesque.

jocelyn elders ("we need to teach masturbation in our schools") all by *herself* was the stupidest, most laughable cabinet-level choice of ANY president EVER.

and bubba chose her. along with all the other bonehead idiots listed. in my book, that makes clinton pretty damn *spectacularly* incompetent. noyyyinger, being a good liberal, will no doubt scurry to defend her man.....but she will be, of course, wrong.

[charles]

geeze bob,

at least you could have given me credit for this

"what have the dems accomplished other than forcing me to stare up waxmans ugly nostrils on cspan?

i wish they would pixilate those astoundingly ginormous caverns of porcine proportions, i feel bad for the guy"

i mean just a little snicker or something

i think it's going to be a long wait for nonwingers nonreply, and i'm bored

but only boring people are bored so i'll guess i'll find something to do

[Zifnab]

"so noyyyinger blithely tells us that bubba "wasn't incompetent", despite hand-picking a cabinet of world-class fuckups that made larry, moe & curly look downright statesmanesque."

So your arguement is that Clinton's cabnet was incompetent because it was incompetent? Circular logic at its tightest.

Do you actually have some instances of their failures? Which corruption investigations did Janet Reno yank the prosecutors on? Which wars did William Cohen botch? When did Madeline Albright falsely identify WMDs to the UN?

I'm confused. What are these worse things that the Democrats have done? I don't think you conservatives can actually name a major failure of the Clinton Administration. Kosavo? Victory. The Budget? Balanced. Impeachment conviction? Dodged. Clinton was a smashing success. We were sitting on a $40 billion dollar surplus, walking into the 21st Century as the envy of the free world.

Now, not so much.

[Cindi]

Zif, you forgot to mention China!

Now about that new Congress.

R.I.P., Rev. Falwell, the moral majority still holds power thanks to you.

[bloodrage bob]

of course you're confused, ziffy. your bright sunshiny riff on circular arguments manages to overlook entirely your profound cowardice in re phoenix's "9-11" question.

you still haven't answered it; you're still running from it like a scalded dog. oh, sure, you *tried* the usual liberal lie and SAID you'd answered it....but then you got busted. so - since you obviously lack the guts to answer a straightforward question - why should anyone give any credence to your moronic regurgitations of the leftist crap you obediently lapped up back in school? at good ol' montrose high?

[Zifnab]

"you still haven't answered it; you're still running from it like a scalded dog. oh, sure, you *tried* the usual liberal lie and SAID you'd answered it...."

Listen BB, you can cork your ears and change the subject. But it merely illustrates your dishonesty. Screaming "I can't hear you" over and over again, then claiming ignorance is very... Republican of you.

That said, you've dodged my questions as often as not, so you can't even really claim the ficticious moral high ground. Keep beating that drum if you want. You're the only one who looks like an idiot.

I would love to hear Clinton answer Phoenix's question though. Perhaps he would have read his own "Bid Laden Determined to Strike America" briefing. Who knows? But playing the "Democrats are worse" card went out the window in '04, when Republicans proved systematically and catagorically, that a blind chimp eating its own feces couldn't have done a worse job of governing the American People.