Demagogue

We all know about the Bush administration's tendency to promote those most responsible for the administration's most spectacular failures and mistakes.

Well, it continues

Paul Wolfowitz, US deputy secretary of defence, has emerged as a leading candidate to replace James Wolfensohn as the president of the World Bank.

Mr Wolfowitz is one of a small number of people being considered for the US nomination, administration insiders said.

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Leadership of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund is decided by all the shareholders in the institutions. But the US and Europe in effect divide up the top jobs, with an American heading the bank and a European running the fund.

The effort to pick the US candidate has been led by the White House National Security Council and the Council of Economic Advisers. The Treasury is leading consultations with other World Bank shareholders.