Bit of a random question but what legislative accomplishments were there during Schröder's first term? I cannot find much information even if I search in German.
Most articles focus Schröder's reaction to externally-driven events such as Kosovo, Iraq, and the 2002 floods.
Basically all the legislative initiatives that I managed to find seem to be really basic and underwhelming stuff such as a minor tax reform in 2000, a slight loosening of criteria for citizenship and naturalization, same-sex civil unions, and agreeing to phase out nuclear power.
Is that really it? Is that really all that was accomplished legislatively? Was the infighting over the agenda really so bad to cause this level of gridlock for his first four years?
And was Iraq and the floods really enough to save the SPD in 2002, or were there other underlying factors and strengths of the SPD? I would assume that voters would just be so sick of the Red-Greens that they'd go with Stoiber anyways.
You’re right, it’s hard to find a comprehensive list of accomplishments of Schröder (or any other German chancellor). In addition to what you have already mentioned, I could think of the following:
Winning an internal struggle for power when SPD party leader and Finance Minister Oskar Lafontaine quit. Unlike the moderate Schröder, Lafontaine was part of the SPD’s left-wing. Today he’s a state politician for Die Linke.
• Winning an internal struggle for power when SPD party leader and Finance Minister Oskar Lafontaine quit. Unlike the moderate Schröder, Lafontaine was part of the SPD’s left-wing. Today he’s a state politician for Die Linke.
• I wouldn’t call the tax reform of 2000 minor. In fact, it lowered the lowest tax bracket from 25.9% to 15% and the highest marginal tax rate from 53% to 42% while increasing tax allowances and cut taxes for corporations from 40%/30% to 25%.
• A tax on electricity was passed in 1999.
• Red-Green passed a massive social security reform called the Altersvermögensgesetz, which – facing an aging population – hoped to stabilize our retirement system through limits on future public social security spending and by encouraging private capital-based retirement insurance (e.g. Riester-Rente, which is modelled after 401(k), but doesn’t work half as well).
• The government managed a swift transition from the D-Mark to the Euro.
• They significantly expanded the system of deposit bottles.
• They passed the Erneuerbare Energien Gesetz (EEG), guaranteeing fixed prices for everyone producing renewable energy (up to 50ct per kWh), which sparked private investment in renewable energies and made Germany the world leader in solar polar. In fact, the EEG might have been the biggest boost for solar power ever and the reason why it has become so cheap over the last two decades. On the other hand, the EEG has significantly increased the cost for electricity in Germany with customers now paying more than 30ct per kWh.
The Iraq War and the floods of 2002 were certainly the most significant reasons for Schröder’s reelection; the donation scandal of the CDU and Stoiber being a rather weak candidate certainly helped as well.
In addition to the accomplishments during his second term, Schröder has quite an impressive legacy. If not for his extremely stupid decision to call for snap elections in 2005, he might very well have won a third term, governing until 2010. Overall, I consider him the most underrated chancellor in German history.
