Now I know my (GOP) ABCs...
Amorality, Bullying and Corruption, that is. Paul Wolfowitz, architect of the Iraq War and for-now-at-least Bush appointee to chair the World Bank, has a problem. A problem quite common to conservatives these days. He was put in his position by the Crony in Chief, and used it to push his own extremist ideology-- in ConservoSpeak, 'restore honor and dignity')-- at the World Bank, while proving to be an incompetent and fatuous administrator. Then, of course, using his influence to give an extraordinarily generous promotion and pay raise to his "girlfriend." And denied responsibility until he was caught utterly dead to rights.
That much we know and pretty much expect of any power player in the Republican machine these days. But, like the politicization of the US Department of Justice, peel away that festering outer layer of corruption and you find another, even more fetid layer within. And another. And another.
World Bank General Counsel Ana Palacio was appointed by Wolfowitz in 2005. Among her credentials for the position are strong support for the Iraq war, being a personal friend of Wolfowitz's girlfriend, a volatile temper, and willingness to obstruct justice if it helps a fellow ideologue.
The World Bank's Ethics Committee apparently knew nothing of Wolfowitz's gift to his girlfriend, but a couple of other people did-- attorneys who reviewed the deal and okayed it, albeit while covering their own asses in a way that suggests they were fully aware that this wasn't on the up and up. Their names? Ted Olsen and Eugene Scalia. Scalia? Yes, as in 'son of right-wing ideologue Antonin' and controversial Bush apointee. But don't forget Ted Olsen! He represented Bush before the Supreme Court-- where Eugene Scalia's father Antonin works-- in a case known as Bush v Gore. Then he was given a special appointment by Bush!
I remember in 2000 talking about the complete corruption of the GOP, that the party was rotten to the core. In a way, those were the more pleasant times. Even though conservative friends and family members chided me as a paranoid Chicken Little, I was still able to maintain a faint glimmer of hope that I was, in fact, completely mistaken.
That much we know and pretty much expect of any power player in the Republican machine these days. But, like the politicization of the US Department of Justice, peel away that festering outer layer of corruption and you find another, even more fetid layer within. And another. And another.
World Bank General Counsel Ana Palacio was appointed by Wolfowitz in 2005. Among her credentials for the position are strong support for the Iraq war, being a personal friend of Wolfowitz's girlfriend, a volatile temper, and willingness to obstruct justice if it helps a fellow ideologue.
The World Bank's Ethics Committee apparently knew nothing of Wolfowitz's gift to his girlfriend, but a couple of other people did-- attorneys who reviewed the deal and okayed it, albeit while covering their own asses in a way that suggests they were fully aware that this wasn't on the up and up. Their names? Ted Olsen and Eugene Scalia. Scalia? Yes, as in 'son of right-wing ideologue Antonin' and controversial Bush apointee. But don't forget Ted Olsen! He represented Bush before the Supreme Court-- where Eugene Scalia's father Antonin works-- in a case known as Bush v Gore. Then he was given a special appointment by Bush!
I remember in 2000 talking about the complete corruption of the GOP, that the party was rotten to the core. In a way, those were the more pleasant times. Even though conservative friends and family members chided me as a paranoid Chicken Little, I was still able to maintain a faint glimmer of hope that I was, in fact, completely mistaken.
posted by Matt Sandwich | 11:37 AM
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