Foreign Policy Blogs

U.S. Financial Leadership?

 dollars

If you were wondering about the global reaction to the U.S. credit crisis this AP report provides some insight (AP – US ‘casino’ mentality blamed for planet's meltdown):

Astounded by the U.S. government's failure to resolve the financial crisis threatening the foundations of the global free market, fingers of blame are pointing at America from around the planet.

Latin American leaders say the U.S. must quickly fix the financial crisis it created before the rest of the world's hard-won economic gains are lost.

[…]

In Europe, where some blame a phenomenon of “casino capitalism” that has become deeply engrained from New York to London to Moscow, there is more of a sense of shared responsibility. But Europeans also blame the U.S. government for letting things get out of hand.

If we are asking what the U.S. role here is, perhaps the answer is that we have to get our own house in order before asserting the global leadership we are accustomed to. Imagine the next president attending the G8 summit in the aftermath of a global economic crisis caused by the excesses of Wall Street. Can the U.S. credibly lead the world economy when we have proved to be such inept stewards of our own domestic economy?

 

Author

Joel Davis

Joel Davis is the Director of Online Services at the International Studies Association in Tucson, Arizona. He is a graduate of the University of Arizona, where he received his B.A. in Political Science and Master's degree in International Relations. He has lived in the UK, Italy and Eritrea, and his travels have taken him to Canada, Brazil, Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and Greece.

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Areas of Focus:
State Department; Diplomacy; US Aid; and Alliances.

Contact Joel by e-mail at [email protected].