(4 of 5)
Johnson's ego reflex is such that he regards any subordinate's departure, no matter how well-intentioned, as a personal hurt. McNamara was probably taken aback because Johnson did not implore him to stay. Again, the mechanics of the departure were not discussed, but they did talk about possible successors. Around the time of the October conversation, World Bank documents began piling up on McNamara's desk.
McNamara seems to have had 1... part in subsequent arrangements, which were being carried out by Woods and Fowler. Woods recalls that on Nov. 8 he shared a car with McNamara and informed him that the nomination would be made soon. "You're still my horse," Woods said. Then, on Nov. 19 or 20, Woods says he telephoned McNamara with the news that the nomination was about to be formally presented on Nov. 22. For some reason, McNamara was not told the schedule for approval and was rudely shocked when the leaks from the bank set off last week's furor.
More Guesses than Hints. Within an hour after the bank's executive directors announced their unanimous approval of McNamara, both the Defense Secretary and the President issued statements designed to halt the rumor mill. McNamara spoke of the "unfailing support and friendship" he had received from the President. Johnson praised McNamara as a "wise, resourceful and prudent originator and collaborator with respect to policies and programs of vital importance to this nation and the world." As to McNamara's offers to remain at his post, Johnson said he could not justify asking McNamara "indefinitely to continue to bear the enormous burdens of his position."
On the crucial point of what policy differences McNamara's departure for the World Bank will instigate, the President declared: "The course of our participation in the war is firmly set; major defense policies are clearly defined, and it will be possible for Secretary McNamara's successor to continue his able and effective administration."
There were plenty of guesses, but no real hint, as to who that successor might be. Johnson need not hurry to pick one because McNamara will stay on for some weeks, perhaps months. The new Secretary's identity and the amount of power that Johnson allows him will be much better indications of the significance of McNamara's departure than last week's speculative rhetoric.
That McNamara chose to go to the World Bank for a tax-free salary of $40,000 when he could have had his pick of six-figure posts in private industry is a clear expression of his innately humane outlook. Set up 22 years ago, the bank specializes in loans to less affluent countries, last year lent $1.2 billion to 40 nations. McNamara has long believed in what he calls the "irrefutable relationship between violence and economic backwardness." In his celebrated Montreal speech last year, McNamara argued: "Security is not military hardware, though it may include it. Security is development."
Now McNamara will have the chance to back that belief with money, to broaden the bank's somewhat limited activities, and to seek new sources of revenue and more imaginative outlets for its funds. And, if his temperament permits, he can do it while working banker's hours.