Remember when George W. Bush rewarded Paul Wolfowitz for his prescience on Iraq by naming him to head the World Bank? Yeah, that was awesome. And remember when, after Wolfowitz proved to be a total disaster and massive embarrassment, Bush appointed a managing director of Goldman Sachs to be his replacement? Yeah, that was super-awesome. Because who cares about global poverty more than Goldman Sachs, right?
This time is going to be different:
President Obama on Friday nominated Dartmouth College President Jim Yong Kim, a physician and anthropologist by training, to succeed Robert Zoellick as the next president of the World Bank.
The naming of Kim was seen as a surprise. Kim, 52, though highly regarded for his leadership in global health issues, is not well known in political or financial circles. But the appointment of the South Korean-born Kim may also deflect criticisms from developing economies of the United States having a lock on the World Bank’s top position.
Kim, president of Dartmouth since 2009, was the former director of the World Health Organization’s HIV/Aids department.
Even the loathsome Fred Hiatt is impressed.
The mission of the World Bank is to help lift people out of poverty, and Kim will be the first bank leader who has dedicated most of his professional life to working with and for the world’s poor.
With another pioneering physician-anthropologist, Dr. Paul Farmer, Kim established an organization dedicated to treating poor people in Haiti, Peru, Rwanda and beyond. The founding principle of Partners in Health was that everyone is entitled to first-class health care, no matter where they live or how poor they are.
The significance of Partners was that it didn’t just declare that as a principle: Farmer and Kim proved, in the face of many doubters and over the course of many years of hard work, that first-class health care can be delivered, respectfully, in the poorest precincts of the poorest countries…
…Past World Bank presidents have included many eminent men, beginning in 1946 with a former publisher of this newspaper, Eugene Meyer. There have been politicians (Barber Conable), defense strategists (Robert McNamara and Paul Wolfowitz), lawyer-diplomats (John J. McCloy and the incumbent, Robert Zoellick) and a half-dozen bankers.
Most of them, however brilliant they were, had to learn on the job about the challenges of poverty and development. That won’t be a problem for Kim.
It seems to me that the guy is really well-qualified to run a World Bank that actually does what the World Bank is supposed to do. And I guess that was the president’s priority, too, since he passed over people like Larry Summers and John Kerry to make this choice.
He still has to be confirmed to the position by the board, but I doubt he’ll have a problem. I expect this choice will eliminate a lot of the grumbling in the developing world about America’s lock on choosing the president. It works on every level, from Kim being Korean-born to his work experience and focus.
Let’s hope he sets a new course and doesn’t become just another bloodsucker.
link
There goes Obama, defending the banks again.
touche, nice comment
Eh, Zoellick wasn’t so bad for a Republican banker stooge. 1,000,000x better than Wolfowitz.
I look forward to the Professional Left stopping by to explain how nominating a non-financial, non-Wall Street, global health development professional to the World Bank totally doesn’t reflect on President Obama’s true, insidious, corporate agenda.
Either that, or complete fucking silence. Probably silence.
And I look forward to asshats like you screaming: “Respect my author-it-tie!!”
or, maybe, you could take his point.
People are silent because no one knows who the hell he is. I bet even Matt Yglesias didn’t even know who he was/is. Did you, Boo? How are you supposed to have an opinion on someone when you never heard of him? If nothing else, people are skeptical because of the history of institutions of places like the World Bank and the IMF. They have a history of robbing the 99% in service of the 1%.
heh. you make me laugh. People are silent because they have nothing to criticize.
How are you supposed to have an opinion on someone when you never heard of him?
Yeah, BooMan, how is someone supposed to develop an opinion about a figure if they don’t already have one?
Do you expect Calvin to take precious seconds away from his grousing to use his grousing machine to actually look up information?
Well duh, it’s because they “made” him do it no way, it’s cause it’s an “election year”…or something else.
I agree with Booman it is a good choice.
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In a surprise move, President Obama named Jim Yong Kim as candidate for the next president of the World Bank. [Excellent choice – Oui]
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."
It would seem that there is not universal acclaim for this move (not that there ever is). A contrary take on things from a Harvard poo-pooer.
Wow, some random comment from some guy (who just happens to be a close personal friend of Larry Summers, naturally), that’s really, uh, worth taking into consideration.
If the rest of the world’s nations got an equal say in the matter, I’m sure the Nigerian woman could win. But heading up the World Bank is an American job. It’s going to an American. That’s just how it goes.
Wow, some random comment from some guy (who just happens to be a close personal friend of Larry Summers, naturally),
It’s funny you mention that. Speaking of Yglesias. He Tweeted that link earlier wondering why anyone could quibble with the choice. I had to remind him of your comment. Did MY even read the article? I doubt it, since he would have figured it out if he did, I hope.
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"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."
His friendship with Larry Summers is noted in the article I linked.
I thought the article worth posting here not as a rebuttal but an addition to BooMan’s post. Nobody knows how it will turn out, and nobody can know if someone else would have done any better or worse. But up front, I always find it more interesting to read both sides of an issue.
His friendship with Summers aside, he is well qualified to speak on the matter.
I find his friendship with Summers to be quite relevant when considering his opinion on the matter, and what to make of it.
I find that all to be very useful information in judging the merits of this choice.
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A code of conduct would undermine the rigor of economic discourse
A positive view: Harvard professor Dani Rodrik, another prominent figure in debates about economic development, also welcomed Kim’s selection, tweeting:
“Re World Bank pick, it’s nice to see that Obama can still surprise us.”
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."
Startling admission from Fred Hiatt?