The Selling of America:

In the past century, the U. S. had a policy of "spreading democracy throughout the world," which translated to using just about any means possible to "spread" opportunities for wealthy American capitalists to establish or purchase businesses in foreign countries. In some cases, this was backed by gun-boat diplomacy, in others by establishing brutal dictatorships, such as the ones in Iraq and Iran.

Now something new is afoot. In addition to foreign businesses establishing footholds in the U. S., foreign governments are buying up businesses here. Peter S. Goodman and Louise Story report on what's happening in today's New York Times. They report that

The most conspicuous beneficiaries [businesses] are Wall Street banks like Merrill Lynch, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley, which have sold stakes to government-controlled funds in Asia and the Middle East to compensate for calamitous losses on mortgage markets. Beneath the headlines, a more profound shift is under way: Foreign entities last year captured stakes in American companies in businesses as diverse as real estate, steel-making, energy and baby food.

Even Maureen Dowd chimes in on the subject:

The country is engaged in a fit of nativism and Lou Dobbsism, obsessing about the millions of Mexicans who might be sneaking across the border when billions in foreign money are pouring into Citigroup. You figure out what might be a bigger problem.

The national boundaries that really matter are the financial ones: Who’s going to own the American economy?

Question of the Day:

Who has the most experience to be the next president of the United States? (Shudder!!!) Dick Cheney. (Nicholas D. Kristof's Op-Ed in today's New York Times.)