Since becoming Chancellor, Angela Merkel has pursued an aggressive travel itinerary and has met with many of her peers on the international stage. But often she has also met with leaders of the opposition parties and groups in an effort to engage in a broad dialogue on foreign policy. In France she met with the nemisis of Dominique de Villepin - Nicolas Sarkozy; in Moscow she expressed her displeasure with Vladimir Putin's anti-democratic policies by meeting with several dissident groups. So far Angela Merkel has made two trips to Washington DC in an effort to restore the traditionally close alliance between America and Germany. She has indeed succeeded in developing a personal rapport with President Bush, but does this necessarily mean that transatlantic relations have improved substantively? Not really. In order to rebuild the partnership with America Mrs. Merkel needs to engage with US Democrats. Here's why:
Lame Duck Presidency: President Bush is extremely unpopular in the US and has zero political capital left for his remaining term in office. Anger about the Iraq War and political corruption in Washington could result in Democrats retaking one or both houses of Congress in the November midterm election. If that were to happen, the tone and agenda in Washington would change dramatically as Democrats take control. Chancellor Merkel should at least be on speaking terms now with leading Democrats in both the House and Senate.
Iraq War: Like several leading US Democrats such as Joe Biden and John Edwards, Angela Merkel was misled by the faulty intelligence reports concerning WMDs in Iraq and supported the invasion in 2003. Today she categorically states that German troops will not be deployed in Iraq. While the US-Republicans have rubber-stamped President Bush's disasterous "stay the course" policy in Iraq, Democrats have presented several different plans for redeployment of US troops. By working constructively with US Democrats, Chancellor Merkel could play an important role in garnering international support for a new approach towards Iraq, one that is in the long-term interest of Europe.
Shared Values: Angela Merkel's party - the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) - is conservative in the context of German politics, and is therefore thought to have a closer affinity with the US Republican Party. But the political center in America has shifted so far to the right over the past 20 years that there is much greater alignment between the the CDU and the US Democrats. While the US Republicans promote social and economic policies that benefit the very wealthy and have exacerbated the income disparities in America, the Democrats are concerned with the Common Good. This focus on the Common Good aligns with one of the guiding principles of the CDU: the pursuit of social justice:
The economic system and the social order are inseparably linked to one another, each delimiting and complementing the other. Any economic policy which lacks social justice endangers social peace and at the same time leads to economic losses and social instability.The social system we advocate is one which combines the principles of humanity and economic viability and creates justice where performance and distribution are concerned. It aims to strengthen individual responsibility and encourage personal assistance and active solidarity.
International Multilateralism: The Coalition Agreement can be seen as a roadmap for the governing CDU/CSU/SPD grand coalition in Berlin. With its strongly worded commitment to human rights and social equity, it could have easily been drafted by US Democrats such as John Edwards, the Vice Presidential candidate who is now active in anti-poverty initiatives. But it is in the foreign policy section of the Coalition Agreement that an obvious parallel to US Democratic values can be seen:
"In order to tackle the major global challenges, we will work together with our partners and allies, in particular at the United Nations, the international financial institutions, the OSCE, the Council of Europe and other international institutions."
"We want to shape transatlantic relations in a way that looks to the future without forgetting our shared history. For this, close, mutual trust between the USA and a self-confident Europe which sees itself as a partner, not a counterweight, is essential."
It was the Democrat Harry Truman who helped create the UN and embraced its mission as a forum for peace and who won bipartisan support for the Marshall Plan. Today, Democrats remain committed to international multilateralism, and view Germany as a true partner, rather than as a vassal of US interests, in Europe. In the interest of establishing an alliance between Germany and America based on mutual respect and shared values, Chancellor Merkel needs to engage with her natural American allies - US Democrats.
You make a good point, Merkel should meet with the Democrats, if they'll see her. Afterall, her party name does have the word Christian in it, which might not go over to well with the Dems.
I know nothing about you, but it's obvious that you're not an American. Joe Biden and John Edwards are jokes, not Dem Party leaders. Secondly, the problem is not that American has moved right starting with Reagan, it's that Germany hasn't moved toward more freedom (ie moved right).
Even Merkel is trying to save the failing "Social Justice" system by raising taxes and putting even more of a squeeze on the productive people in society. This leads of course to a sluggish economy, fewer jobs, lower wages and record emigration. Lots of the most productive Germans are moving to the land of rabid capitalism.
Your Iraq War analysis is cliches. Your point that CDU and the Dems have shared values is good for no one, not the CDU, not the Dems and not for Germany or the US. If the CDU equal the Dems, where does that put the SPD? PDS? Greens?
Man, you guys are in trouble on moving in the right direction. Good luck and all the best.
Prediction: Tax increases are not going to help.
Posted by: Jabba the Tutt | July 02, 2006 at 12:25 PM
The drift to the right in the US is resulting in less freedom - not more. Just this weekend I listened to Republican Congress members and commentators (Bill Bennett) call for the imprisonment of reporters of the NY Times.
What we are now seeing is wholesale spying on US citizens, a move to eliminate the separation of Church and State (which our founing fathers knew would result in tyranny), state control over the uteruses of our wives and daughters, a movement put hate into the US Constitution (the "Marriage Amendment"), and an attempt to stifle dissent ("flag burning").
The rightward shift to an Imperial Presidency - embraced by Republicans - is a movement towards dictatorship. Sad thing to say on the eve of Independence Day.
Posted by: David | July 03, 2006 at 08:30 AM
The Democrats have zero chance of returning to power. They are in a political death spiral with the party, top to bottom, captured by the most extreme members who see 1968 as the nadir of their lives. The party has lost the working tradesmen, veterans, and small business. It still has its hold on academics, unions, and government employees and welfare recipients. All of who depend upon state power and state taxation under force for their livelihood. It also has media and Hollywood. But artist aren’t known for knowledgeable educations. The last group is the merchants depending upon legislated benefits. This includes trial lawyers, Warren Buffet and many leaders of old, high cost, low quality industries.
Democrat states such as Massachusetts, New York, Michigan are all losing population as the young, talented, and industrious flee the bloated, high tax states which exist more and more to support the life styles of Democrat party leaders and their human misery crop of self manufactured welfare, crime and poverty. These states have lost and will continue to lose political seats in the US House of Representatives. Furthermore these states are getting older. Also the loss is kept less by poor, uneducated, unskilled, high crime immigrants. So, if the Federal government every gets its US/Mexico border closed, these states could well slide into bankruptcy with little industries, old population, high cost government workers and pensions and debts.
Young people, and families are fleeing to Texas, Florida and to other southern and western states now in the hands of Republicans. These states are gaining seats in Washington. They are younger, have the newer industries and everyone remembers the propaganda of the Democrat party.
A review of Democrat presidential candidates is so weak and pathetic that even I, a Republican, worry. Al Gore, Kerry, Hillary, all losers save at the high controls of the party. Do to the machinations of this generation of Democrat party leaders, they have salted the internal mechanisms of the Democrat party such that they won’t be challenged and thus there are no young Democrat politicians behind them. Again as Democrat states fail, it is hard to have a party member from that failed state win the national stage as citizens will connect him with that states poor performance. Furthermore as the Democrats lose seats in Washington the infighting for the remaining seats becomes more vicious and more extreme. The winners are even less palatable nationwide.
George Bush isn’t running again, and he couldn’t care less about poll numbers. I cannot remember ever Bush leading in a poll, taken by leftist media. I only know he always wins. So, whom I going to believe? George Bush or the always wrong, lying press?
Support for the war in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere is strong. Bush’s request for men and money has been approved by both parties near or over %90 votes. Volunteer military recruiting remains on path, with those who have paid the price and been in combat the highest. As an aside I will say that these men, women, officers will in later years leave the military and many go into politics. The will remember the comments of this now shrill Democrat party and the MSM (main stream media). Few will be Democrats.
Posted by: Carl Spackler | July 03, 2006 at 09:44 AM
@ Carl,
If the Democrats have zero chances to return to power as you claim, why to conservative bloggers spend so much time attacking the Dems?
Posted by: Joerg - Atlantic Review | July 03, 2006 at 04:31 PM
It is interesting that most of the Iraq War veterans running for office this cycle are Democrats - Fightin' Dems like Tammy Duckworth.
Also, there is absolutely no empirical evidence that "support for the war in Iraq is strong".
As for the vitality of the 'Blue States", I spend a great deal of time in Silicon Valley, and I can assure you that it is coming back stronger than ever - as evidenced by the traffic jams on the Freeway. Your comments about the demise of New York and Massachusetts is just wishful thinking.
Posted by: David | July 03, 2006 at 05:39 PM
David, Carl gave you empirical evidence. The Congress (up for election this year) voted 90% for Iraq war support. Let me translate that for you - 9 in 10 legislators up for re-election this year voted to support the war. Only one in ten took the very unpopular position of voting against support.
As to the vitality of the Blue States - population statistics speak for themselves - your anecdotal evidence could be jaded by your prejudices. It has affected your reading comprehension enormously.
California is surviving because a Republican swooped in after a recall of a very unpopular Democrat was thrown out.
Now to the thrust of this near humorous post - John Edwards was my Senator. He was called Mr. Never-There because he missed almost all of the votes. He bought his Senate seat with money he won as an ambulance chasing lawyer. His largest award came from convincing a jury that he was channeling a dead girl. We call him the Breck girl, too, because of his fascination with his own looks. This shallow dollbaby was chosen because the democrats have no political power in the South. We replaced Edwards with a wonderful Senator, Mr. Burr., a republican.
Joe Biden ran for President back in 1999, but got out of the race when evidence of plagiarism surfaced. Before it became an enormous embarrassment and completely destroyed his career, he withdrew from the race.
The reason there are so many republican bloggers is because of the LameStreamMedia. They are out to get our president and they don't care how many lies they tell to do it. Also they will compromise national security, as the most recent NYT fiasco revealed. We are a check on America's Fifth Column, a leftist press.
In order for the democrats to gain back any house of governance they will have to take 15 seats in the House (impossible) and six seats in the Senate (republicans have three at risk).
As was pointed out above, leftist media outlet take the polls. They generally oversample democrats giving them several percentage points. Evidence in the internals indicate data manipulation.
The last reliable poll taken in America, GWB won the Presidency by several million votes, while republicans GAINED in the Senate and the House. Polls indicated the reverse. Zogby had Kerry by 4 points. LOL.
The drift to the right? America is a conservative country. When Clinton won he did not have a majority. There were two candidates that split the right. Without Perot, GHB would have been re-elected. Keeping that in mind, republicans will control the WH all but eight years in twenty eight. (And of those eight, four was not a majority vote - Clinton was impeached due to purjury and cannot practice law.)
It's silly to say America is losing freedoms because of republicans. REPUBLICANS ARE FOR LESS GOVERNMENT. No press member has been thrown in jail - although the NYT certainly has earned prosecution through its revelations of a working surveillance program that has been proven both legal and effective. Yet Mr. Keller was at the White House for dinner just a few days ago.... Absolutely no freedoms have been lost, except through judicial activism of the left. Many years ago the lives of the unborn human babies lost all civil rights when judges made a very unpopular decision that has rippled through American society since. It will be seen by history as the second great Holocaust. History will not be kind to a generation of Herods who murdered babies for the crime of inconvenience.
And David, those traffic jams on the freeway - that's not a good economy, that's poor civic planning.
Posted by: Kathy | July 04, 2006 at 10:33 AM
Jorg,
It is in the spirit of being “critical”. I am sure you have a grasp of that concept. Much as the European bloggers attack America.
Posted by: joe | July 04, 2006 at 02:32 PM
@Joerg: Carl and Kathy are agreeing with me. But I will take on some of your points:
"The drift to the right in the US is resulting in less freedom - not more. Just this weekend I listened to Republican Congress members and commentators (Bill Bennett) call for the imprisonment of reporters of the NY Times."
First of all, the point was moving to the right from Reagan's time. Second, if reporters break the law, a law that has been on the books since 1916, how is it a loss of freedom to try, convict and imprison NY Times reporters?
"What we are now seeing is wholesale spying on US citizens,"
I'm assuming you're refering the the NSA effort. Again, Joerg, you are misinformed due to your reliance on the Lamestream Media. The NSA program looked at phone records, not phone taps, phone recordings or phone spying. This is and has been perfectly legal for decades. Again, there's no loss of freedom or privacy.
"...a move to eliminate the separation of Church and State (which our founing fathers knew would result in tyranny),.."
Again, Joerg, you're believing the leftwing wacko paranoiacs. Give me an example of the threat of Theocracy.
"...state control over the uteruses of our wives and daughters,..."
So, there's no legitimate argument against abortion, eh? Sounds like you're simply trying to shut up the differing view.
"...a movement put hate into the US Constitution (the "Marriage Amendment"),..."
So, opposing Gay Marriage, something that has never existed in any civilization in the history of history is an attempt to put hate into the US Constitution?
"...and an attempt to stifle dissent ("flag burning")."
So, flag burning is "stifling dissent". Joerg, you are simply trying to define anything you oppose as evil. This hardly contributes to free and open debate.
"The rightward shift to an Imperial Presidency - embraced by Republicans - is a movement towards dictatorship. Sad thing to say on the eve of Independence Day."
Joerg, so far, you've only made gratuitous assertions and provided zero evidence. In the rules of logic, I can simple dismiss your gratuitous assertions with my own.
Your case fails.
Since Reagan, we had tax cuts, the end of the fairness doctrine, which has lead to an explosion of political opinion on radio and tv, reductions in government regulations. I, of course, would love to see much, much more of this.
Internationally, the Right brought down the Soviet Union, Saddam and the Taliban with the effect of liberating hundreds of millions. Free trade was expanded under Reagan and even under Clinton.
Clinton of course raised taxes, increased regulations and attempted a government takeover of 1/7 seventh of the US economy. Today's Left and the Democrat Party offer zero in increasing freedom. Who do the Left want to liberate? Give me one example of an expanding freedom Dem agenda?
Posted by: Jabba the Tutt | July 05, 2006 at 01:25 PM
Evidently the Republicans long for an authoritarian, one-party rule with an Imperial Presidency.
The trade-off is: please keep us safe and give us a tax break, and we don't care if you take away our freedoms. Oh, and please lock up those nasty reporters that report about detainee abuse and the Iraq civil war! Just tell me how we're winning the War on Terror.
Posted by: David | July 05, 2006 at 02:53 PM
I love it.
The moonbats in the US in bed with the french and Germans.
This will surely win the hearts and minds of the majority of the American people.
Let us hope the dem's reach across the sea.
Posted by: joe | July 05, 2006 at 03:49 PM
Your understanding of the current state of affairs in the US is laughable, almost approaching that of the US Democrats. Go ahead and have your government contact them. While they are at it, have them contact the people from Uranus too. They will know how to help the dialog along.
Now if you will excuse us, we have a better real world to build, and you should stand back so you don't get hurt or scared.
Posted by: DaveR | July 05, 2006 at 05:56 PM
@DaveR -
Yes, you are building a new world all right - a Brave New World. Welcome to the new totalitarianism.
Posted by: David | July 05, 2006 at 09:44 PM
DavidR,
Please understand the replies you are getting from david are his typical chant.
The only evil he sees in the world are those nasty Republicans, conservatives and of course GWB.
He has no workable ideas or solutions. This is why he finds it so comfortable to hang out with the euro's because they don't have any either.
So at the end of the day you get name calling.....
This is what he thinks his side can use to win elections. They are void of ideas on just about anything other than more taxes on the people who actually work.
david is nothing more than a little socialist who wants to bring you the same failed social welfare state he thinks so highly of.
Of course he also would put the US totally under the UN and the US could do nothing unless it got a permission slip for the french and Germans.
So let us hope the dem's listen to him. He has a winning idea....
Posted by: joe | July 05, 2006 at 10:08 PM
OMG, an allusion to "Brave New World"! How insightful.
Posted by: DaveR | July 06, 2006 at 09:08 AM
I admit you guys are winning - at least in certain parts of the US.
http://dialoginternational.typepad.com/dialog_international/2006/07/triumph_of_chri.html
Congratulations! One State, One Party, One Religion. A new world order - reported by Fox News...
Posted by: David | July 06, 2006 at 08:30 PM
David, I agree with Joe. All I see from you is stupid, uninformed accusations that you never seem to back up. Nice rep you're getting, keep it up.
Posted by: Jabba the Tutt | July 06, 2006 at 09:52 PM
David: re: "Oh, and please lock up those nasty reporters that report about detainee abuse and the Iraq civil war! "
Explain in complete detail when ANYONE in ANY US party has so much as suggested jailing reporters for reporting their version the war? They should lose their jobs, certainly, since they are not reporting the whole story, but no one thinks they should be imprisoned for it.
The prison threats are for those thugs who have reported national security secrets, such as the NSA phone record tracking-- and you were in no danger of your records even being looked at unless Al Qaeda has you on speed-dial-- and tracking of bank records to see where money known to come from terrorist organizations is going.
Both of those programs were valid and legal and necessary. And the NYTimes blew the cover on them.
Of COURSE the reporters of those stories should go to prison! They are actively helping terrorists.
Posted by: LC Mamapajamas | July 14, 2006 at 10:20 PM
@LC
"Both of those programs were valid and legal and necessary."
Sez who? Alberto "Abu" Gonzales? Torture scholar John Yoo? There are many constitutional scholars who DO NOT think they are valid and legal and necessary. But I suppose you would want those "thugs" who do not blindly follow Dear Leader to be locked up as well.
It is telling that your first instinct is to defend the Power of the Leader rather than the principle of the Free Press or your constitutional rights.
Posted by: David | July 15, 2006 at 08:37 AM