In the 2005 election that brought her to power, Merkel ran on a strong promarket platform. It was unpopular and she subsequently softened her stance. But there is little doubt that the 2005 agenda expressed the chancellor’s basic personal vision. It can be summarized in three numbers: 7, 25 and 50. As Merkel is fond of pointing out, Europe has 7 percent of the world’s population and 25 percent of global GDP. But it is responsible for 50 percent of global social spending.17
