US lawmakers urge global search for World Bank head

WASHINGTON, May 25 (Reuters) Four key US congressional leaders urged the Bush administration to consider non-American candidates to head the World Bank, saying the best nominee to heal rifts at the institution could come from anywhere.

The Democratic chairmen of four House of Representatives Committees said in a letter to President George W Bush that he should scour a global pool of candidates to replace Paul Wolfowitz, who resigned last week amid an uproar over a pay raise he authorized for his companion.

''There has been much discussion of whether or not the nominee should or must be an American. We think that misses the point,'' read the letter signed by House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank, House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey, House Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Tom Lantos.

''The nominee should be deeply committed to American values, but need not have an American address. The global pool of talent is deep, and we should make it clear that the United States believes that the best nominee could come from anywhere,'' the congressmen said in a letter dated May 24 and released today.

Bush, who has delegated the task of choosing Wolfowitz' replacement to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, has said he wants an American to fill the post.

The United States has traditionally appointed the World Bank president, while Europe has chosen the head of the International Monetary Fund.

Names that have circulated as top contenders thus far include former U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick and US Deputy Treasury Secretary Robert Kimmitt, according to Republicans close to the Bush Administration. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair's name also has been associated with the post.

The House Democratic leaders said they wanted the nomination to send a ''loud and unambiguous signal of the commitment of the United States to the Bank's core anti-poverty mission.'' They urged Bush to make it clear that the US will work with its partners ''to identify the woman or man with the right mix of intellectual, management and diplomatic skills. This would not only be the right thing to do but would also signal that our country is fully committed to the multilateral agencies,'' they wrote.

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