Word: chancellors
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Germany's elections on Sept. 27 had more than one victor. Sure, German Chancellor Angela Merkel retained her grip on the post. But Guido Westerwelle, the head of the Free Democrats, was the real winner, becoming the first openly gay leader of a governing German party. Though Merkel's conservative Christian Democrats pulled in one-third of the vote - less than in 2005 - Westerwelle's party captured 14.6% of the ballots, a 4.7% increase that was the largest of any group. Germany will now be ruled by a coalition of the two parties. Following German tradition, Westerwelle is slated...
Read " 'Much Work' Ahead for German Chancellor Merkel...
...cleverly avoided mentioning any date. The issue is likely to define the new government - either because Merkel and company carry out reforms and remake many of the German economy's pillars, or because the coalition partners squabble over how much they should do. (Read: "'Much Work' Ahead for German Chancellor Merkel...
...German economy. Westerwelle also called for controversial reforms to make it easier for firms to hire and fire workers and he proposed 400 spending cuts. That could lead to clashes with Merkel, who's spent the past few years defending Germany's social and labor protections. "I think Chancellor Merkel will continue to be middle of the road to appease the Social Democrats," Gustav Horn, the director of the Macroeconomic Policy Institute in Düsseldorf told TIME. "Labor market reforms are still very unpopular in Germany and they're not necessary because the German labor market has proved...
...claiming victory, Merkel said she wanted to be a "Chancellor for all Germans, so Germany does better, particularly in a crisis." Most commentators have interpreted that statement as a signal to the FDP that it's the CDU who will make the big decisions. Merkel says her top priority will be to create jobs and get the economy back on track. The question of how that's best done is likely to define the new government...