Reading between the G7 lines

It’s true, indeed, that Henry Paulson didn’t originally like the “Swedish model” for dealing with the U.S. financial institution crisis. But, it looked like emergency meetings yesterday, along with EU sentiment, forced him in that direction:

"There are two competing models. The American model, which no one wishes to draw inspiration from, and the British model. This is what everyone is talking about," the source close to the French presidency said, on condition of anonymity.

In the George W. Bush presidency, America first squandered its standing as the moral arsenal of democracy. We’ve now frittered away being the intellectual grounding of capitalism, too.

Meanwhile, French President Nicolas Sarkozy has Eurozone leaders, plus Britain, meeting in Paris tomorrow.