2007.05.24: May 24, 2007: Headlines: Figures: COS - Tunisia: Journalism: Humor: World Bank: Washington Post: Al Kamen writes: It may be we were wrong to say Shaha Riza was Wolfowitz's girlfriend
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2007.05.24: May 24, 2007: Headlines: Figures: COS - Tunisia: Journalism: Humor: World Bank: Washington Post: Al Kamen writes: It may be we were wrong to say Shaha Riza was Wolfowitz's girlfriend
Al Kamen writes: It may be we were wrong to say Shaha Riza was Wolfowitz's girlfriend
Of late, there have been a couple e-mails and calls demanding to know why the media often refer to World Bank President Paul D. Wolfowitz's companion, Shaha Riza as his "girlfriend" when, they insist, she's his mistress, because Wolfowitz is not divorced from his wife, Clare. When we checked a while back, we could find no records of a divorce in Maryland, and land records indicated that Paul and Clare remain owners of a home in Montgomery County. But, to paraphrase the great Donald H. Rumsfeld, absence of a divorce record is not evidence of a divorce. So it may be we were wrong to say Riza was Wolfowitz's girlfriend. If so, we regret the error. Washington Post reporter Al Kamen served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Tunisia.
Al Kamen writes: It may be we were wrong to say Shaha Riza was Wolfowitz's girlfriend
Riding the Slow Train on Iraqi Refugee Resettlement
By Al Kamen
Monday, May 14, 2007; Page A13
[Excerpt]
Are They or Aren't They?
The calls usually start: "Why do you people always . . . " Of late, there have been a couple e-mails and calls demanding to know why the media often refer to World Bank President Paul D. Wolfowitz's companion, Shaha Riza as his "girlfriend" when, they insist, she's his mistress, because Wolfowitz is not divorced from his wife, Clare.
It's true that no one in the media has used the press's subpoena and contempt powers to force someone to tell us what the bank chief's marital status is. Some reporters doubtless felt it was not the central factor in, as they say at the bank, "the current situation," or TCS.
Some sources have said they thought the couple were divorced. Others said they were "legally separated."
But since the TCS began in late March, reporters have tried, just for the record, to get a clear answer to the question. Last week, our colleagues Linton Weeks and Richard Leiby asked several people close to Riza and the Wolfowitzes to clarify. None could -- or would.
Weeks, in an e-mail, asked Clare Wolfowitz about the marital situation. She didn't address the question.
Two years ago, when Wolfowitz was nominated to the bank presidency, the Daily Mail in England reported that she refused to confirm her marital status. "Reports of his appointment repeatedly describe Wolfowitz as divorced but [the newspaper] has been unable to find any records. Asked if she is separated or divorced, Clare replied: 'That's my business.' "
When we checked a while back, we could find no records of a divorce in Maryland, and land records indicated that Paul and Clare remain owners of a home in Montgomery County.
But, to paraphrase the great Donald H. Rumsfeld, absence of a divorce record is not evidence of a divorce.
So it may be we were wrong to say Riza was Wolfowitz's girlfriend. If so, we regret the error.
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Story Source: Washington Post
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