Hamburgers can vote, too | 59 comments (59 topical, editorial, 0 hidden)

Black-green? (4.00 / 2)

Merkel gives nod to Green partnership
Angela Merkel, Germany's Christian Democratic chancellor, on Monday gave her approval to the creation of the first coalition of the CDU and Greens in a move that could transform the country's party-political landscape.
Meanwhile, in an equally ground-breaking decision, the Social Democratic party, junior partner in Ms Merkel's "grand coalition", said it would no longer oppose all forms of co-operation with the Left party in western German states.

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

by Jerome a Paris (etg@eurotrib.com) on Mon Feb 25th, 2008 at 04:04:38 PM EST

Re: Black-green? (4.00 / 2)

Rot-Rot-Grün-Debatte: Kritiker gehen vor Beck in die Knie - Naumann beklagt sich über "Lkw aus Mainz" - Politik - SPIEGEL ONLINE - Nachrichten		Red-Red-Green debate: critics fall on their knees before [SPD party boss Kurt] Beck - [Hamburg leading candidate Michael] Naumann complains about "truck from Mainz" [capital of Beck's home state Rhineland-Palatine]
Steinbrück, Steinmeier: War da was? Der Proteststurm gegen SPD-Chef Beck hört so plötzlich auf, wie er ausgebrochen war. Sämtliche Spitzengenossen stellen sich jetzt im Linkskurs-Streit hinter ihren Boss. Hamburgs Wahlverlierer Naumann allerdings beklagt sich über einen "Lkw aus Mainz", der alles "platt gemacht" habe.		[Federal economy minister Peer] Steinbrück, [federal foreign minister Hans-Walter] Steinmeier - was there anything? The storm of protest against SPD boss Beck ends as abruptly as it started. Now all top comrades line up behind their boss in the fight over the leftward direction. However, Hamburg's election loser Naumann complains about a "truck from Mainz" which "flattened everything".

My interpretation: the so-called "storm of protest" was the media hyperventillating about some cases of veiled criticism, and SPIEGEL still saved some of it into the headline. Amazingly, the SPD did find back to Schröder-time party discipline.

_{*Lunatic*, n.

One whose delusions are out of fashion.}

by DoDo on Mon Feb 25th, 2008 at 05:06:53 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Black-green? (4.00 / 2)

I love the nuance -- the article quotes the actual line constituting the paradigm shift:

"Sollte es nicht zu einer Koalition (mit FDP und Grünen) kommen, wird die SPD Hessen entscheiden, ob und gegebenenfalls wann sich Andrea Ypsilanti im Landtag zur Wahl stellt."

Should a coalition [with FDP and Greens] fail, the Hessen SPD will decide if, and, should the case arise, when Andrea Ypsilanti will stand for election [as PM] in the regional parliament.

The system is: if a PM candidate gets the majority vote in the regional parliament, s/he can form a government. Since the Left Party already announced its support, just standing for election would assure a PM Ypsilanti. And the Hessen SPD was given free hand.

_{*Lunatic*, n.

One whose delusions are out of fashion.}

by DoDo on Mon Feb 25th, 2008 at 05:16:52 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Meanwhile in the Bundestag... (4.00 / 3)

While the SPD is far behind the CDU in polls, in the parliament, the CDU+CSU lead over the SPD just reduced to 1.

This is again that curious effect of the so-called overhang mandates, a peculiarity of the German election system, which I wrote about last June when the difference reduced to 2.

_{*Lunatic*, n.

One whose delusions are out of fashion.}

by DoDo on Mon Feb 25th, 2008 at 05:29:17 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Hamburgers can vote, too | 59 comments (59 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

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