Much of Uncle Sam's attention is focused on immediate economic matters, in particular, on the declining economic condition for low-income households, homeowners and consumers as well as on investors suffering from sharp Wall Street decline, businesses suffering from declining sales and profits, and financial institutions of all kinds with problematic portfolios and declining markets.

The US economy is at a critical juncture. It has had low growth relative to the world average and many other nations since the 2001 recession; and there are signs that the long period of improved economic well-being passed from one generation of Americans to the next might be over. A key for the nation to ensure that forthcoming generations have improved economic status is to have strong performance in international markets, however, there are indications that this may not be the case in the next few years and beyond.

While still the largest economy in the world, accounting for over one-quarter of global economic activities—the US' leadership position is in decline. The nation's share of the world's economy has declined approximately 5% since 2001, while the shares of Brazil, India, Russia and China (BRIC nations) have been increasing at accelerating rates.

The US' share of worldwide gross product—US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as a percentage of World Gross Product—declined from just under 32% to 27% from 2001 to 2006. During the same period, the BRIC nations' combined share of worldwide gross product increased from 8.3% to 11.6%. China had the biggest increase of any nation —from 4.2% to 5.5%.

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