Word: fdp
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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Angela Merkel will be re-elected as Chancellor of Germany on Sept. 27. That's one of the safest bets around. The only question is whether she will be in a coalition with the Social Democrats (SPD), as in the last four years, or with the Free Democrats (FDP), a center-right party out of power for 11. In Merkel's success hangs a tale of significance beyond Germany...
...outcome would represent a substantial shift in German politics. Governing with the Social Democrats since 2005, Chancellor Merkel, though firmly on the center-right in most questions, has often tacked to the left to preserve her coalition. She has said that she would prefer to govern with the FDP, but that would recast the Social Democrats as formidable opponents, determined to torpedo the tax-cutting agenda the FDP would demand. Westerwelle fears she plans to retain her current partners instead. "That makes me angry, not for me, but for Germany," he told the German daily, Bild. (Read: "Busting Out: German...
Westerwelle espouses the economic liberalism that has always defined the FDP, and under his eight-year command he has positioned his party as the champion of the Mittelstand, Germany's formidable family-owned companies. "When a big company gets into difficulty, the German eagle comes to the rescue. When a Mittelstand company gets into trouble, the vultures circle," Westerwelle said in May. His recipe for growth: encourage private investment and cut taxes. "You can sign 100 stimulus programs but if investing doesn't gain momentum, the economy won't get better," he says...
...FDP leader welcomed President Obama's election. "Hopefully it signals the return to a model of cooperation that we consider very important," says Westerwelle. But Washington shouldn't expect too much love. Westerwelle is determined to avoid mission creep in Afghanistan. All but a handful of the 4,500 German troops are deployed in the north of the country, away from the fiercest fighting in the south. "We shouldn't risk our successful operations in the north by taking on duties in other areas," he says...
...desire to be in that public eye is palpable. Smaller opposition parties have to work hard for media attention. Westerwelle sealed his reputation as a publicity seeker in the early part of this decade with a flurry of attention-grabbing exploits he hoped would attract younger voters to the FDP. He was, he proclaimed, a Spasspolitiker (a fun politician). His stilted conversation with reality TV show contestants in Germany's Big Brother house was typical of the sort of fun this entailed. (See the Top 10 Skanky Reality Shows...