Former Republican now Democrat Senator Arlen Specter from Pennsylvania announced his party switch in Washington. Senator Specter has been only a few moderate Republicans left in the Capital Hill, and historically he has crossed party lines and voted with the Democrats time to time. Specter has remarked that the break was a tough decision, and Republicans have criticized Specter's move. Democrats have welcomed Specter to their party and promised fundraising support for his Senate reelection next year. If the state of Minnesota confirms Democratic Senate candidate Al Franken as its Senator, then Democrats will have a 60 majority in the Senate that can help the party push through some key legislations without the procedural hurdles from the Republicans.

This is big news. I knew Arlen Specter was quite a moderate Republican, but this party switching is unexpected. Now the pressure is on the Minnesota's Senate race, which has been dragging on by Norm Coleman's legal appeal. There seems to be an echoing sentiment by the moderate Republicans that the party has moved too far to the right. I think this is a wakeup call for the Republican Party, because in the short term Democratic Party dominance will lead to successful policy execution.

New Zealand’s Labour Party faced a crushing defeat by the conservative National Party led by John Key. The election sealed any political future for the current Prime Minister Helen Clark, who was seeking a fourth term. Although Clark made various accomplishments, economic recession in the agriculture exporting country was the key issue in the election. The financial crisis is at a global scale, and it seems to be changing the political landscape in many democracies as voters look for change in leadership that can navigate the country through a tough economic time.

New Zealand leader loses to conservatives – International Herald Tribune

As the world community cut back on the consumption of oil, the price of crude continues to decline, and OPEC responds by announcing plans to cut back on production. Iran and Venezuela have advocated for more steeper cuts in production, but many OPEC members had concerns that further production cuts could worsen the global economic crisis and destroy demand. The White House criticized the plan as anti-market production decisions. OPEC revealed high concerns for the severe erosion in revenue in recent months.

OPEC Slashes Production; Crude Continues to Tumble – ABC News – Associated Press

As various financial firms liquidate there assets and banks hoard cash, the value of the dollar has been rising against other currencies. The Euro and the British Pound has been losing value since the beginning of the financial crisis. Only the Japanese Yen has been able to maintain its value, but experts warn that the Japanese economy might face a possible depression as the export-driven economy faces the the slowing down world economy.

Global financial crisis has one beneficiary: The dollar – The International Herald Tribune