Obama and Brown talks to focus on financial crisis

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} British Prime Minister Gordon Brown is in Washington today to hold talks on the global economic crisis with President Obama, becoming the first European political leader to meet the President since his inauguration.   Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso was the first foreign leader to visit Obama in the White House, a week ago.   The two leaders are also expected to discuss ways to tighten financial regulations, a major subject for the summit of the Group of 20 developed and emerging economies that Brown is hosting in London on 2 April.   Brown and Obama met last July when Obama visited London during a European tour while he was still a Democratic presidential candidate.   Brown has called for a "global New Deal" in which major economies can cooperate to stimulate growth and improve financial regulation. He is due to speak in Congress Wednesday, where he plans to call on countries to avoid trade protectionism.   The US and the UK share many of the same economic problems, and Obama may find the British Prime MinisterÔÇÖs experience as Chancellor of the Exchequer (the equivalent of Treasury secretary) extremely helpful, as he ponders whether to ask Congress for billions more dollars for the financial rescue effort.     *┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á *┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á *