SPD sellout complete: Merkel becomes chancellor

[Ecthy]

He is the head of government, so he represents us in the EU (according to protocoll). Has nothing to do with what his predecessor did. Maybe you should stop reading right wing press.

[Spiffor]

It's an excellent political move. The UK won't have the EU presidency for 12 years after that. It's basically the only chance for the UK to make a real difference in the construction of the EU for a decade.

Schröder has experience with third way liberalism. When he first came to power, he admired Blair. With the practice of power, however, he quickly changed his tune. If he expects that the same will happen to Merkel, he's perfectly right to do everything he can to avoid her taking the wrong European decisions while she's naive.

Besides, anything that can prevent the Rosbifs from destroying Europe is excellent. With his decision, he is serving his country and his continent one last time, and in a good way

[Colon™]

I agree with Dan, Schröder is being an ass.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Originally posted by Colon
I agree with Dan, Schr�der is being an ass.

Ditto. What a whining *****. Good thing he lost.

[Mazarin]

Originally posted by Spiffor
Schröder has experience with third way liberalism. When he first came to power, he admired Blair. With the practice of power, however, he quickly changed his tune. If he expects that the same will happen to Merkel, he's perfectly right to do everything he can to avoid her taking the wrong European decisions while she's naive.

You are aware of the fact that it was his party didn't allow him to do what Blair did? He is not the fighter for a social justice you're making out of him. Schröder's swings to the left always occure when he's campaigning or -like now- when he's fishing for sympathy in his own party and the unions for having prevented the "neo-liberals" from taking over power. His US-bashing is a typical symptom for this: Short after Katrina, our environment ministry Trittin was basically pointing his finger at the US and saying that it was their own fault for not having signed Kyoto. On the point of Merkel not going to the EU-summit: She'll be too busy with coalition talks anyway and won't have time to prepare properly...so she'll let Schröder do his show for some more weeks.

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by Mazarin
You are aware of the fact that it was his party didn't allow him to do what Blair did? He is not the fighter for a social justice you're making out of him.

Son't worry, I know. However, his complete change of tune about Blair makes me think that there's more than just SPD opposition. If he only had to cater the demands of his party (which he didn't seem to care too much about during Hartz IV btw ), he would have not initiated too much of a rapprochement with Britain. But his outright hostility to British interests during EU negociations is FACT, not merely talk. He did ally himself with Chirac, and in a tight alliance at that. Party dynamics do not determine such diplomatic stances.

Schröder's swings to the left always occure when he's campaigning or -like now- when he's fishing for sympathy in his own party and the unions for having prevented the "neo-liberals" from taking over power

Yup, but I hink there is more. Like many Social-democratic weaklings, he might have thought of his reforms as a necessary evil. And now that he isn't bound to do this "necessary evil", he can lash out at a system that he might actually despise.

I'm not making this arse a hero of the masses. But maybe, now that he has found his freedom of speech again, he can prove that he's not a complete ass full of neoliberal ideology.

[Colon™]

Originally posted by Spiffor

Son't worry, I know. However, his complete change of tune about Blair makes me think that there's more than just SPD opposition. If he only had to cater the demands of his party (which he didn't seem to care too much about during Hartz IV btw ), he would have not initiated too much of a rapprochement with Britain. But his outright hostility to British interests during EU negociations is FACT, not merely talk. He did ally himself with Chirac, and in a tight alliance at that. Party dynamics do not determine such diplomatic stances.

In essence, that would boil down to blocking CAP reform and subsequently UK's rebate. I don't find that very inspiring.

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by Colon
In essence, that would boil down to blocking CAP reform and subsequently UK's rebate. I don't find that very inspiring.

There is also the fact that London and Berlin have been at odds on the poltico/economical future of Europe. Though it's not fully on-topic, I must also mention the stint on Iraq, which symbolized that Germany had entered a firm alliance with France against Britain (and the alliance has held until the end of Schröder's reign), which is quite surprising of somebody who used to admire Blair so much.

[Theben]

Originally posted by DanS
The tax cuts were in '81. The simplification and closing of loopholes was in '86. Both were very sound economic policy, from which we have benefitted these last 25 years.

Fine, so the "simplification and closing of loopholes" caused 90% of the population's taxes to go up. The Bottom 90%.

Which country is that? Where is that Xanadu?

I know we're not quite to the point where we have to hire the police ourselves after being robbed blind, but you know I meant America.

Oh, and Schroeder

[DanS]

Personally, I don't find Germany and France to be such natural bosom buddies with regard to the UK. AFAIK, Germany doesn't have a real dog in the fight for CAP, for instance. I always found the Chirac-Schroeder relationship rather forced. The smiles on their faces when they were together was just plain creepy. If they actually got along well, I'd be amazed. And in any event, that relationship managed to be the "engine of Europe" that presided over a failure of the EU constitution process and an alienation of large swaths of the union.

Besides arranging the deck chairs on the Titanic -- a process that Colon seems to be so enamored with -- what has Schroeder accomplished? To me, he's a small man. The good that Blair has done for his country and party as an effective leader is evident.

[Colon™]

Originally posted by Spiffor

There is also the fact that London and Berlin have been at odds on the poltico/economical future of Europe. Though it's not fully on-topic, I must also mention the stint on Iraq, which symbolized that Germany had entered a firm alliance with France against Britain (and the alliance has held until the end of Schröder's reign), which is quite surprising of somebody who used to admire Blair so much.

What it boil downs to, if Schröder sticks his head up to Chirac's ass and insists on lambasting Blair, is no CAP reform. That's a centerpiece of Blair's chairmanship, whatever grander visions there may be.

And besides, Schröder foremostly is an opportunist.

[Colon™]

Originally posted by DanS
Besides arranging the deck chairs on the Titanic -- a process that Colon seems to be so enamored with -- what has Schroeder accomplished? To me, he's a small man. The good that Blair has done for his country as an effective leader is evident.

Ever bothered to check Blair's track-record? There's that half-hearted devolution reform, that spending splurge on health-care and public services, the so-so Iraq-war, and next to that...? Not much I can think of. You didn't exactly presented a massive list of reforms of Reagan either.

I don't particularly like Schröder either, but I just find your venom towards him hard to understand.

[DanS]

but I just find your venom towards him hard to understand

Personally, I hate his guts for playing the Hitler card against the US for his own electoral purposes, when Bush hadn't criticized him. But beyond that, he was a totally ineffective leader. I know several people who were unemployed for long stretches under his chancellorship, wasting away their most productive years.

[notyoueither]

Originally posted by DanS


It's a diplomatic faux pas. Schroeder knows he's demeaning his office of Chancellor by saying such things, but he does it anyway. He was a bad Chancellor and he's going out on a low note.

Yes.

[notyoueither]

The UK convened the informal gathering partly in an attempt to clear the air following the acrimonious June summit in Brussels. There, Mr Schröder and Jacques Chirac, the French president, clashed with Tony Blair, UK prime minister, over the EU budget. London hoped the election would bring a change of government in Berlin. Now it fears Mr Schröder could be plotting an explosive farewell by again teaming up with Mr Chirac.

Informal?

They should delay it.

'Sorry, the PM has a headache...' for a month.