Roberto Azevedo stepped down as director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO) on August 31, becoming the first to do so before the end of his term. Azevedo's surprise announcement was made in May, and the Brazilian was in the third year of his second four-year term. Eight candidates from Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America are vying for the post, but world events are rapidly making this competition irrelevant. There is no U.S. candidate, nor does there need to be one, as Washington should shun the WTO as an organization that is not just useless, but illegitimate. The WTO is based on the principle that "A country should not discriminate between its trading partners and should not discriminate between its own and foreign products, services or nationals." This means national governments cannot protect their own people. Indeed, the WTO claims the authority to declare national laws to be “illegal” and to authorize sanctions. Who in a democracy...(Read Full Article)