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Merkel Rips the Fed for Deepening Crisis

German chancellor says central banks have made economy worse

By Jason Farago,  Newser Staff

Posted Jun 3, 2009 6:46 AM CDT

(Newser) – World leaders rarely criticize central banks in public, but yesterday Angela Merkel laid into the Fed, the European Central Bank, and other institutions for deepening the global economic crisis. In a tough speech, the German chancellor claimed that the banks were too powerful, had acted too aggressively, and, in the case of the relatively prudent ECB, had "bowed somewhat to international pressure." Their actions "must be reversed," Merkel said.

As the Wall Street Journal reports, Merkel's highly unusual intervention suggests that the German government—with its long memories of Weimar-era hyperinflation—remains anxious about whether the Fed and ECB can mop up the hundreds of billions in liquidity they have pumped into world markets. The banks' actions, she warned, were only laying the groundwork for another crisis: "We will be in exactly the same situation in 10 years' time."

German Chancellor Angela Merkel after her speech at a beer festival tent in Unterschleissheim, near Munich, Germany, on Monday, June 1, 2009.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel after her speech at a beer festival tent in Unterschleissheim, near Munich, Germany, on Monday, June 1, 2009.   (AP Photo/Christof Stache)
German Chancellor Angela Merkel speaks at the conclusion of a European elections in Berlin.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel speaks at the conclusion of a European elections in Berlin.   (Getty Images)
German Chancellor Angela Merkel delivers a speech on Europe at the Berlin Humboldt university on Wednesday, May 27, 2009.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel delivers a speech on Europe at the Berlin Humboldt university on Wednesday, May 27, 2009.   (AP Photo/Fritz Reiss)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 5 comments
cfbailey
Jun 3, 2009 12:56 PM CDT
this woman needs ti switch to Miller Lite
Newser001
Jun 3, 2009 4:26 AM CDT
Merkel is taking a rational approach to bailouts. She has a point... we may be stoking hyper inflation down the road, or possibly making matters even worse by not allowing bad companies with corrupt behaviors as well as bad assets, to fail (i.e.: AIG). Time will tell...
Newser001
Jun 3, 2009 4:21 AM CDT
Aclepd, You are unethical, using Newser to promote your agenda / drive traffic to your website. Please stop.

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