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On Saturday, as global financial markets continue to freefall, President Bush played host to a gathering of the so-called G20 countries in Washington D.C. The summit brought together world leaders from countries that comprise 90 percent of the world’s gross domestic product, who agreed over the weekend to an action plan that we’ll discuss today. Before talks began this weekend, President Bush warned against too much government intervention in the economies of the world as a solution to the crisis. A senior Bush official defined the G20 action plan as an “affirmation” of capitalism. President-elect Barack Obama did not attend the weekend summit but did send Madeline Albright and Jim Leach on behalf of his transition team. International activists from across the world also convened in Washington D.C. to protest the summit and call for substantive changes. On Friday, demands endorsed by more than 400 hundred organizations from more than 50 countries were issued for an “Economic System that Works for People and the Planet.” Activists also held a march, carnival rally and people’s forum on Saturday in calling for debt relief in third world economies as well as reforms that put people before profit.

GUEST: Alan Charney, Program Director for USAction. For more information visit www.usaction.org and www.truemajority.org.