Bank Pledges Decision Soon on Wolfowitz

World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz appears at a news conference in Washington in this April 15, 2007, file photo. Wolfowitz encountered stiffening opposition Saturday, April 28, 2007, to staying on as World Bank president amid allegations he showed favoritism in arranging a promotion and pay package for his girlfriend. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) (J. Scott Applewhite - AP)

Sen. Max Baucus, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, urged Wolfowitz to step down.

"It would be my hope that Wolfowitz finds that discretion is the better part of valor and finds a way to no longer be a part of the bank," said Baucus, D-Mont.

Wolfowitz has maintained that he acted in good faith, and his attorney, Robert Bennett, said his client "is not going to resign in the face of this bogus conflict of interest charge."

Riza had been working at the bank for eight years when Wolfowitz arrived in 2005. She had earned close to $133,000 a year as a communications adviser in the bank's Middle East department. She was reassigned at the State Department to avoid a conflict of interest but remained on the bank's payroll. Her pay eventually rose to $193,590.

Riza, who also appeared before the special panel on Monday, said she didn't want to move in the first place, defended her pay as being within the same range as employees at the same grade level and said the ensuing "media circus" has hurt her career and her personal well being.

The U.S. is the bank's largest shareholder, and President Bush has said Wolfowitz should remain on the job. The European Parliament, many of the bank's staff, former bank officials and some Democratic politicians have called on him to resign.

For his part, Wolfowitz was trying to carry on with his duties. On Tuesday, he was still planning to fly to an education summit in Brussels, Belgium.

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