Why Do German and U.S. Reactions to the Financial Crisis Differ?
in German Politics and Society
Author:
Stephen J. Silvia
Stephen J. Silvia
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Among the many striking developments that arose out of the 2008-2009
financial crisis and the subsequent EURO crisis has been the policy divergence
between the United States and Germany. Typically, the two countries
have broadly similar preferences regarding economic policy. To be
sure, this is not the first time that Germany and the U.S. have failed to see
eye to eye on economic matters,1 but the recent gap in perception and
policy does warrant attention because it has been unusually large. Unlike
the famous quarrels between Jimmy Carter and Helmut Schmidt in the
1970s,2 personality does not seem to play a role in this case. What then
does explain the gulf?