Germany Rejects Obama's Call on Growth, Stoking G-20 Conflict - Bloomberg

Germany Rejects Obama's Call on Growth, Stoking G-20 Conflict - Bloomberg

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government rebuffed U.S. calls to focus on bolstering growth over debt reduction, setting a course for conflict at the Group of 20 summit in Canada this week.

“Nobody can seriously dispute that excessive public debts, not only in Europe, are one of the main causes of this crisis,” Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble told reporters in Berlin today alongside Merkel. “That’s why they have to be reduced.”

Arthur Brooks: Slouching Towards Athens - WSJ.com

Arthur Brooks: Slouching Towards Athens - WSJ.com: "A predictable corollary: Many Europeans also expect others to work so they can live. The International Social Survey Programme asked Americans and Europeans whether they believe 'It is the responsibility of the government to reduce the differences in income between people with high incomes and those with low incomes.' In virtually all of Western Europe more than 50% agree, and in many countries it is much higher—77% in Spain, whose redistributive economy is in shambles. Meanwhile, only 33% of Americans agree with income redistribution."

Geithner Tells G-20 That World Can't Rely on U.S. Consumer - WSJ.com

Geithner Tells G-20 That World Can't Rely on U.S. Consumer - WSJ.com: "U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told his foreign counterparts in blunt terms this week that they can no longer count on the American consumer to absorb the world's exports and lift the global economy"