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Would John McCain be able to handle this financial crisis?

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In less than two months, the U.S. is scheduled to hold an election. As the current 100 Year Crash unfolds, it is clear that old ways of thinking will not fix the problem. This challenge is enormous: history will not provide much of a guide and it is likely that the entire global financial system will need to be rebuilt from scratch. In short, whoever gets the job will face a challenge that would be overwhelming for anyone -- and it will require a leader with brains, energy and determination.

That's what scares me about John McCain's interview on NBC's Today Show Wednesday. Dealbreaker reports that Matt Lauer asked McCain whether he would let American International Group (NYSE: AIG) fail "on their own" without government help. To that, McCain replied,

Well...quote, "on their own"...we have to - we cannot have the taxpayers bail out AIG or anybody else...this is something we're gonna have to work through -- there's too much corruption, there's too much access, we can fix it, I believe in America - we can have a 9/11 commission such as we had after 9/11, 'cause this is a huge crisis and we can come up with fixes and we can make sure that every American has a safer future and that is to make them know that their bank deposits are safe and insured."

Maybe the Senator is not good at thinking on his feet. Did he not realize yesterday morning that AIG had already been bailed out by the government? And the idea of fixing this catastrophic situation by creating a commission -- a classic do-nothing Washington solution to a political problem -- suggests that he does not have any thoughts of his own on what to do. Granted, he has advisors, like Phil "Americans are Whiners" Gramm who have done things -- deregulating the $62 trillion Credit Default Swap (CDS) market that is spurring Wall Street's collapse. But some might see that as more part of the problem than part of the solution.

However, if you agree that giving the presidency to the man who made that statement to Lauer is the best way to save the global financial system, you know what to do on November 4th. I think that we need a leader who can mobilize the best minds in the world to create a new global financial system. McCain's interview does not create confidence that he is such a leader.

Peter Cohan is President of Peter S. Cohan & Associates. He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter.

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Last updated: November 11, 2009: 05:17 AM

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