By Yang Qingchuan 　

The inauguration of US president-elect Barack Obama is still more than 40 days away, but the world has already talked about America in a post-Bush narrative.

Indeed, as the outgoing President George W. Bush gets fewer headlines, people in the United States and abroad now watch more closely what is going on in Chicago, where Obama's transition office is based.

US President-elect Barack Obama speaks to host Tom Brokaw during a taping of "Meet the Press" at the NBC Tower in Chicago, Illinois December 6, 2008.[Xinhua/Reuters]

In many ways, Obama has long been received by the US electorate as the "anti-Bush" candidate. Actually, many would agree that his election owed much to many of Bush's mistakes, failures and unpopularity.

As Obama is taking over the country, he is also taking over the daunting problems left by Bush's eight-year tenure -- the economic crisis, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, terrorism and a long list of other issues, for which there are no quick fixes.

Economy to define Obama-era

The latest news on the economic front underlines the fact tackling the worsening economic crisis is Obama's top priority.

Talk of a possible bailout of the auto industry and the US government's latest announcement that 533,000 jobs had been lost in November reveal the depth and breadth of the economic crisis.

US President-elect Barack Obama is flanked by Council of Economic Advisors Director-designate Christina Romer(L), National Economic Council Director-designate Lawrence Summers (R) as he announces the members of his economic policy team during a news conference in Chicago, November 24, 2008.[Xinhua/Reuters]

At no time in the United States' modern political history, as the Washington Post puts it, has a president stepped into a dire moment as Obama will next month.