Politics

Trump Likely To Appoint Conservative As Next World Bank Head

REUTERS/Agustin Marcarian

Saagar Enjeti White House Correspondent
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President Donald Trump is likely to appoint David Malpass of the Treasury Department Wednesday as the next president of the World Bank, two sources familiar with the decision tell The Daily Caller.

Malpass has served as Treasury’s Under Secretary for International Affairs since September 2017 and came to the administration with conservative credentials.

The Caller was first to report Malpass’s consideration in early January.

US Undersecretary for International Affairs David Malpass leaves a hotel in Beijing on January 7, 2019. – A US government delegation is in China for the first face-to-face talks since US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping agreed on a temporary truce in the trade war. (Photo by WANG ZHAO / AFP)

The World Bank opening came with the surprise resignation of Jim Yong Kim, who was scheduled to remain at his post until 2022, on Monday. Kim did not provide any reason for his resignation, but his exit provides a new opportunity for the Trump administration change the direction of the World Bank.

NEW YORK - APRIL 14: Republican David R. Malpass announces his U.S. Senate candidacy in front of City Hall April 14, 2010 in New York City. Malpass is one of the Republican challengers to Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand's seat in the upcoming November elections. Malpass is a former adviser to Presidents Reagan and Bush Sr. and served as chief economist at Bear Stearns. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

NEW YORK – APRIL 14: Republican David R. Malpass announces his U.S. Senate candidacy in front of City Hall April 14, 2010 in New York City. Malpass is one of the Republican challengers to Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand’s seat in the upcoming November elections. Malpass is a former adviser to Presidents Reagan and Bush Sr. and served as chief economist at Bear Stearns. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Steve Moore, a Heritage Foundation economist with close ties to the White House, extolled Malpass’s virtues to the Caller in January, saying his nomination “would be a dream come true.” (RELATED: World Bank: Record $30 Billion Leaving The US For Mexico”) 

He added, “The World Bank is the swamp of international bureaucrats who have all the wrong ideas and it needs to be completely cleaned out. David Malpass would be an ideal guy to do it.”

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders would not confirm the appointment Tuesday but told reporters that if Malpass is the choice, he would be “a great choice.”