And the Germans badly want the British aboard the euro-ship, in part as counter-ballast to the French.

ECONOMIST: G��nter Verheugen, ever up-and-coming

The job will require Ridge to marshal the resources of more than 40 federal departments and agencies that play a part in counter-terrorism efforts.

CNN: Ridge sworn in as homeland security chief

The Fed has already slashed short-term interest rates by 1.25 percentage points in the past two months, in part to counter the credit turmoil.

ECONOMIST: Credit crunch