And although a typical European "conservative" is still more amiable to state intervention/welfare than their American counterparts, the rise of those like Sarkozy and Angela Merkel -who grew-up in Communist East Germany and knows the pitfalls of socialism first hand- shows a clear trend... socialists and big-government solutions throughout most of the continent are in decline.
Predictions of a close German election for the Bundestag were not to be, as the CDU's strong showing at the polls provided the votes needed to govern with Merkel's preferred partners this time, the pro-business Free Democrats- rather than with the leftist, anti-American SDP in a so-called grand coalition. This arrangement has kept her needed reforms hamstrung for four years... right-up until the SPD was trounced yesterday.
As noted at American Thinker:
►American Thinker
►Deutsche Welle
As noted at American Thinker:
Merkel can form a right of center government in Germany. The Christian Democrats remain the strongest party in the Bundestrat... This means that Merkel can now pursue those policies that she actually feels will help revitalize the private sector in Germany and that German foreign policy.
The percentage of the vote received by the Socialist SDP in this election was the lowest since the end of the Second World War... the socialist left of Barack Obama and the Democrat Party is wildly unpopular in the most important democracy in Europe.
Looks like the Merkel platform of lower taxes, nuclear energy, and market solutions to economic problems made sense to increasingly-pragmatic German voters... more -here-
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►Deutsche Welle