What Obama Could Learn from Germany (Der Spiegel, GERMANY)

The United States is experiencing its worst crisis in decades. Obama is trying to fight it by preparing one gigantic economic stimulus program after the other. But the hangover is inevitable, and if the desired economic miracle doesn't materialize, it will be a massive one.

The most attractive thing about globalization is that it has enabled us to develop international tastes in our shopping. Our wine comes from France, our flat-screen televisions from Korea and our elegant shoes from Italy.

But you can also find good ideas for governing by shopping for them around the world. The catalogue of ideas is packed. Indeed, many countries have answers to the question on everyone's mind these days: "How do I rescue my economy?"

But the new US president prefers American-made products. And even if the Senate has watered down the internationally contested protectionist provisions in the US economic stimulus package, "Buy American" remains a popular term in the heartland as Washington navigates the muddy waters of this crisis. For Obama, the obvious course was to opt for an XXL-sized stimulus package complete with a job-creation program, even if that meant a huge deficit. It is a concept that was developed and tested by former US President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1930s and 1940s.

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