Must-Read: : Congress Should Care About the IMF: “Since 2010, Washington’s paralysis has blocked badly needed changes at the International Monetary Fund…
…The [budget] bill will let them go forward. This is good news. It serves U.S. as well as global interests. But the protracted delay draws attention to a deeper problem, still unresolved: Rather than lead the IMF in its vital work, the U.S. continues to settle for the role of glum bystander. Five years ago, IMF members agreed, among other things, to increase the fund’s financial resources and rebalance countries’ voting power…. Congressional approval was needed, and this is only now being granted…. The U.S., out of negligence rather than calculation, has said it isn’t much interested in having an up-to-date IMF and can’t be bothered to recognize the new standing of China and other big emerging economies…. Doesn’t the spending bill put this right, finally? Better late than never? That would be generous…. Reforming the IMF by stealth, after prolonged delay, is better than not doing it all. For its own sake, and everybody else’s, the U.S. should aim a bit higher than that.