Government and Politics in Europe December 4, 2014 By Hung-jen Wang 王宏仁

Today’s Outline I. The Government of Germany  Map of Germany  Historical Background: Molding the German Nation  Society and Economy  Federalism and Bureaucracy  Post-Unification Foreign Policy

Business-industrial concentration Political and economic life

Historical Background: Molding the German Nation The First Reich ( ) : Polarized Germany and territorial fragmentation based on different sovereign powers Napoleon to Bismarck ( ) : Liberal movement and German nationalism; Prussia and a united Germany The Second Reich ( ) : Constitutional Monarchy The Weimar Republic ( ) : Constitutional Democracy The Third Reich ( ) : Hitler’s rise to power, totalitarianism, and the Holocaust The Occupation ( ) : denazification and democratization; basic law ( Grundgesetz ) Reunification (1990-)

Society and Economy Economic Background: Western Germany’s “social market economy”. From Bonn to Berlin and In Between: an economic, cultural, and political hub Economic and Social Stratification: transforming from an industrial into a postindustrial society Women, Law, and Society: the legal structure of gender discrimination has been gradually torn down Ethnic Minorities: the problem of “guestworkers” ( Gastarbeiter )

Federalism and Bureaucracy

Like the United States, Germany divides power constitutionally between national and state governments. 16 Länder: 13 territorial states and the 3 city-states (Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg). German federalism differs from the U.S. brand : in the U.S. both federal and state governments exercise a full range of separate legislative and administrative functions, whereas German federalism confers the bulk of legislative powers upon the national government, with the Länder being responsible for the laws. Boundaries of the Länder: any change must be approved by the Bundesrat, and then ratified by the affected Länder. The Bundesrat vs. the Bundestag

Post-Unification Foreign Policy Germany promised it will honor all treaties respecting its present boundaries and obligations to the European Union. Germany defines its priorities less in terms of a narrow national self-interest than within the context of a broader “European house”.