In the best-case scenario, this financial panic would be over by Inauguration Day. However, the U.S. and Europe will be in recession while the rest of the world will be facing a slowdown. International trade will be shrinking for the first time in years, and protectionism will be probably on the rise. International capital flows will drop dramatically for well-known reasons, and state intervention in the economy will reach an intolerable level.

The outlook will not be bright; however, it will be the perfect time to have a renewed presidency in the country that started the economic meltdown. He can start a new era-- he has the ability to redesign economic institutions and reignite the innovative drive of America as an economic powerhouse. It would be easier if he understood the twenty-first century's risks and opportunities. He must grasp the impulse that is being created by climate change through energy and technology. And it would help if he could avoid the "Made in America" temptation. In recession times, keeping jobs from going overseas seems to be the only way to protect the economy; in fact, it is the worst.

As an economic journalist in a developing country, I have been covering an extravagant sequence of crises over the last three decades. Brazil had a terrible debt crisis in the 1980s, a period of unbelievable hyperinflation from 1986 to 1994, a banking crisis in 1996 when three large banks filed for bankruptcy, and an exchange rate collapse in 1999. From these experiences, I can assure that there is no crisis that lasts forever. One day, this terrible storm will be over. The new beginning will be easier because of a new administration in the U.S.

The president of the largest and most powerful economy should lead the way by initiating sound policies at home and supporting the best policies globally. He should join the British prime minister's call for a new global order and new global institutions to replace the dead multilateral institutions we inherited from the 20th century.