German Chancellor Angela Merkel, March 14, 2009:
If we want to actually strengthen the effect of such [stimulus] packages you simply have to implement them and not talk about the next one before the first has actually taken effect.
Bloomberg, March 26, 2009:
Chancellor Angela Merkel is injecting 82 billion euros ($110 billion) into the economy, the biggest stimulus package in Europe. . . . Germany’s spending spree came after Merkel exasperated European Union leaders, who wanted her to endorse a collective 200 billion-euro rescue package for the 27-nation trade bloc last November. . . . [The] package amounts to about 1.5 percent of GDP in 2009.
And there goes the last tiny shred of consistency in Europe. The story that has dominated the run-up to the G-20 summit has been about the split between the U.S. and Britain, united behind the supposed need for more stimulus bills, and the Europeans, who wanted global economic governance instead. Continue reading…
