EU-DIGEST

Labels: EU, Leadership

USA: Lee Iacocca's fighting mad (about US Leadership) - by Jim Mateja

In his new book, ''Where Have All the Leaders Gone?'' ($25 hardcover, Simon and Schuster), the retired Chrysler chairman goes on the attack in the first paragraph. ''We've got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a cliff. We've got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can't even clean up after a hurricane, much less build a hybrid car. But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when politicians say 'Stay the course.' This is America, not the Titanic. Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than making us take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo.''

Iacocca says: "My friends tell me to calm down,'' he continues in the book. ''They say, 'Lee, you're 82, leave the rage to the young people.' I'd love to as soon as I can pry them away from their iPods for five seconds."

Labels: Leadership, USA

The gambler who is betting on the constitution - by Wolfgang Münchau

Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, took two large calculated gambles at the beginning of Germany’s presidency of the European Union. The first was an emphasis on climate change, the second an attempt to revive the EU constitution. Not everybody thought this was a smart choice at the time. The first gamble paid off handsomely for Ms Merkel in political terms, no matter what you may think about the details of last month’s climate deal. I would expect the second gamble to pay off as well.

Ms Merkel has some personal qualities that matter immensely in this difficult process. She is a good listener, and talks straight but does not hector. A physicist by training, she has good attention to detail. Having grown up under the communist East German regime, she is better than most other west European politicians at dealing with central and east European leaders.

Labels: EU CONSTITUTION, Leadership, Merkel, Unity