President Bush will welcome world leaders to Washington this weekend to address the global financial crisis. He has already signaled his resistance to increased regulation of global finance in advance of the competing agendas the leaders will bring to the table. This AP report examines the diverse proposals world leaders bring to Washington and it makes clear that Bush's status-quo approach may not sit well with his peers who are eager for major reform on par with the Bretton Woods agreement which established the post-war financial system. It's worth noting, that agreement was negotiated and implemented over many years, it's doubtful that a weekend summit will lead to a comprehensive successor. Perhaps this meeting will merely be an opportunity for the world leaders to set forth their initial negotiating positions while leaving it to a future conference, one attended by the new American president, to forge a new framework for the global financial system.
