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There are denials flurrying around, but it's still being reported as fact by Reuters:

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in talks to become the president of the World Bank, Reuters's Lesley Wroughton reports. Clinton's spokesman Philippe Reines offered a denial to Reuters and has been offering strong quotes to other outlets. He told NBC, "It's 100% untrue, Reuters is wrong. That's on the record." According to Reuters, which cited three different "sources familiar with the discussions," Clinton would leave the Obama administration next year to lead the organization.

Clinton has previously said she wants to leave her post at the State Department at the end of President Obama's first term. When asked early last year if she could imagine staying in the job for another four years, she answered, "No, I really can't." She also said she was "absolutely not interested" in seeking the U.S. presidency again.

Actually, this makes sense in many ways. The head of the World Bank is traditionally an American. And the current president, Robert Zoellick, was seated in 2007 for his five year term. At 63, she's certainly more than up for the challenges of the office and remain an important figure on the international scene--this was Paul Wolfowitz's old position, don't forget. And it leaves her conveniently unavailable in 2016 to run for the Presidency, which at 68 would be more strenuous than she would like.



Mike's Blog Roundup

The Mudflats: The real story behind the "rogue" in Palin's new book

digby: The right may be confused but they are thrilled to be wallowing in their domestic paranoia once again.

Pam's House Blend: Facebook poll - "Should Obama be killed?"

Taylor Marsh: In Iraq, General Ray Odierno and Ambassador Christopher Hill are at loggerheads

The Peking Duck: World Bank Head: The dollar will lose its place to the euro and reninbi

The Satirical Political Report: Forget Chicago as Host City. here's what Obama should really pitch to the IOC



Mike's Blog Roundup

Radimisto: Mitt Romney has spent about $1million per delegate. Lance Mannion has more...

King of Zembla: Ser-en-DIP-i-ty

Informed Comment: Turkey hits 70 sites in Iraq; U.S. accidentally kills another 13; Sistani aides kidnapped in Basra.

Ken Silverstein: War in Chad: World Bank-backed oil project hasn't created promised "model" of development.

Danger Room: Spies mine YouTube for intelligence.

bookforum: The power of unreasonable people.



Paul Wolfowitz Has A New Job

Wolfowitz-AEI AP Via Yahoo:

Former World Bank chief Paul Wolfowitz, who resigned amid a furor over his handling of a bank pay package for his girlfriend, has joined the American Enterprise Institute, a think tank, as a visiting scholar.

AEI's president, Christopher DeMuth, made the announcement Monday. Wolfowitz will work on entrepreneurship and development issues, Africa and public-private partnerships, the group said in a release.

Wolfowitz's last day as head of the World Bank, a major poverty-fighting institution, was on Saturday, ending a stormy two-year run.

He was essentially forced to step down from the World Bank after a special panel found that he broke bank rules in arranging a hefty pay raise for Shaha Riza, his girlfriend and bank employee. Wolfowitz's handling of the pay package prompted a staff revolt and calls by Europeans and others for him to resign. Read more...



Mike's Blog Roundup

Gristmill: Lots of headlines about G-Dub's new climate strategy.  If your immediate reaction is cynicism, well...looks like you learned something over the last seven years.

The Reaction: Another neocon at the World Bank

TBogg: Mourning becomes Peggy Noonan...George Will also exposed his deranged world view 

LiberalOasis: Time for congressional oversight on permanent American bases in Iraq

World-O-Crap: Remember when Commander Codpiece claimed that Jesus changed his heart?  How can we tell?

OFF THE BEATEN PATH: JAZZ from HELL, Watching Those We Chose, The Funny Farm, low culture



Breaking: Paul Wolfowitz Resigns From World Bank

Wolfowitz-Bush-Resign ABC:

World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz has resigned his post, effective June 30. An internal panel tasked with investigating the lucrative pay and promotion package Wolfowitz arranged in 2005 for girlfriend Shaha Riza found him guilty of breaking bank rules...read on



Wolfowitz and his potty mouth just won't go!

wolfowitz-ap-photo.jpgAP photo: Paul Wolfowitz is in deep trouble with the World Bank, but like most of the Bushies---he refuses to step down. Instead, he does a "Cheney" on them all.

Sounding more like a cast member of the Sopranos than an international leader, in testimony by one key witness Mr Wolfowitz declares: "If they f*&k with me or Shaha, I have enough on them to f*&k them too."--- "Mr Wolfowitz saw himself as the outsider to whom the established rules and standards did not apply."

A Cheney in this instance is telling someone to F*&k themselves and not shooting them in the face. As always, Bush supports his corrupt pals:

White House Spokesman Tony Snow says President Bush continues to stand by Wolfowitz."The fact is that he made mistakes. They are not in our view, firing offenses," he said.
What is a firing offense to this administration? Please, tell us! C&Ler "Liberty lover," reminds me to ask the nine US Attorney's what a firing offense is. ABC is reporting that the WH is showing signs of cracking:

On the second issue, the senior official told ABC News "it is an open question" whether Wolfowitz can remain an effective president of the World Bank.



Wolfowitz Found Guilty of Conflict of Interest; Aide Resigns

wolfowitz1.jpg International Herald Tribune:

Paul Wolfowitz came under renewed pressure to resign as World Bank president on Monday as a bank committee formally transmitted its findings that he was guilty of a conflict of interest in arranging for a pay raise and promotion in 2005 to Shaha Ali Riza, his companion.[..]

It was not clear whether the committee, consisting of 7 of the bank's 24 board members, would remove Wolfowitz from his post or, more likely, express a loss of confidence in his leadership in a manner that might persuade him to resign. Bank officials say that a majority of the bank board has concluded that he should go.

In another sign of Wolfowitz's difficulties, his top communications aide, Kevin Kellems, resigned on Monday, saying that "the current environment surrounding the leadership" at the bank made it "very difficult to be effective in helping to advance the mission of the institution."[..]

(A senior European) official said that the overwhelming sentiment in Europe, as expressed in editorials, political commentaries and even Web logs, was that European governments should never again let the United States pick the president of the World Bank all by itself.

UPDATE: More than 50,000 Avaaz.org members from more than 180 countries have signed a global petition calling for Wolfowitz to be fired. At 1 pm tomorrow--Wednesday, May 9--join us for a rally outside of the World Bank headquarters at 1818 H St NW in DC to deliver the petition. We'll have a banner reading "World to Bank - Fire Wolfowitz," and flags from around the world.



Mike's Blog Roundup

The Rude Pundit: In church with Robert Kennedy, Jr., Greg Palast, and Randi Rhodes

Danger Room: The U.S. Army has ordered its personnel to stop posting to blogs or sending personal e-mail messages, without first clearing the content with a superior officer. Meanwhile, this veteran was imprisoned for seeking his benefits

The Largest Minority: Monday, the LAPD attacked the immigrant rights movement as a whole by going on a rampage against working class protesters in Los Angeles

A Tiny Revolution: TNR's Chiat proves himself to be a full-grown hack by playing the false equivalency card

American Prospect: The rest of the world's major economies no longer depend on America's. Neither do America's own largest corporations. But the guys who brought us Enron, brownouts and wholesale-price-gouging in California, not to mention higher electric bills are at it again.

If a cartoonist knew, why didn't the White House?

OFF THE BEATEN PATH: Three Bulls!, NEWS COVERAGE ON RADIO & TV, World Bank President, 4/29truth.com



Wolfowitz Asked To Resign

Hear the drumbeat getting louder?

wolfowitz1.jpg UPI:

An agency that oversees the World Bank is asking for the resignation of the bank's president, former deputy U.S. Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz.

In a document obtained by the Financial Times, the Independent Evaluation Group asked for Wolfowitz's immediate resignation, saying a continuation of his leadership will lead to "irreparable harm to worldwide efforts in poverty reduction and sustainable development."

The pressure for Wolfowitz to resign mounted last week, when 42 of the bank's senior former executives published an open letter urging his removal.

"There is only one way for Mr. Wolfowitz to further the mission of the bank: he must resign," the letter said.