Guido Westerwelle
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Guido Westerwelle
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Member of Parliament
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| Assumed office 1996 |
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| Preceded by | Heinz Lanfermann |
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Chairman of the FDP
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 2001 |
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| Preceded by | Wolfgang Gerhardt |
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Leader of the Opposition
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 2006 |
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| Preceded by | Angela Merkel |
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| Born | December 27, 1961 Bad Honnef, Germany |
| Political party | FDP |
| Residence | Berlin, Bonn |
| Occupation | Politician, Lawyer |
Guido Westerwelle (born December 27, 1961) is a German politician and leader of the liberal party Free Democratic Party of Germany (FDP). Since the two largest parties, the CDU/CSU and SPD, are currently in a grand coalition, the FDP is the largest party out of power and as its leader, Westerwelle is also the current Leader of the Opposition within the Bundestag.
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[edit] Early life and education
Guido Westerwelle was born in Bad Honnef, Germany. After graduating from Gymnasium in 1980, he studied law at the University of Bonn from 1980 to 1987. Following the First and Second State Law Examinations in 1987 and 1991 respectively, he began practicing as an attorney in Bonn in 1991. In 1994, he earned a doctoral degree in law from the University of Hagen.
[edit] Life in the FDP
Westerwelle joined the FDP in 1980. He was a founding member of the Junge Liberale, the youth organisation of the FDP and was their chairman from 1983 to 1988. He has been a member of the Executive Board of the FDP since 1988 and became Secretary General in 1994. In 1996, he was elected to the German parliament (Bundestag), succeeded Wolfgang Gerhardt in 2001 as FDP chairman and in the elections of September 2002, he was the FDP's chancellor-candidate. It was the only time that the FDP nominated one. In the elections of 2005, he was just "head candidate" again. In the spring of 2006, he is also succeeded Gerhardt as leader of the Bundestag parliamentary group.
[edit] His politics
Westerwelle is a staunch supporter of the free market and has proposed reforms that would curtail the German welfare state and liberalise German labour law. He has advocated for substantial tax cuts and believes in smaller government. While this is in line with the general direction of his party, his chairmanship has seen considerable controversy. Critics inside and outside the FDP have accused him of focusing his energy on public relations, as opposed to developing and promoting sound public policy. Westerwelle himself, who was made party chairman particularly because his predecessor Wolfgang Gerhardt had been viewed by many as dull and stiff, has labeled his approach as Spaßpolitik (fun politics) in the past [1], a description that many now consider to be a liability.
Furthermore, Guido Westerwelle has been strongly criticized for supporting the Jürgen Möllemann's campaigns critical of Ariel Sharon's policy. The leaflet was claimed anti-Israel and when it was distributed before the general election in 2002 that Westerwelle was forced to distance himself of Möllemann as he intended to become the foreign minister in a new government.
After the 2005 elections he gained reputation by not compromising the political party line in ruling out a possible participation in a coalition with the SPD and the Green party.
[edit] Personal life
On July 20, 2004, Westerwelle attended Angela Merkel's 50th birthday party accompanied by his partner, Cologne businessman Michael Mronz, thereby tacitly acknowledging that he is gay. It was the first time he attended an official gathering with his partner. This made clear that he no longer expected his relationship with Mronz to be treated with discretion. The move generated little controversy among the German public.[2]
[edit] References
- ^ "Der Samurai der Spaßpolitik" (in German). Welt Online. 2003-07-03. http://www.welt.de/print-welt/article239101/Der_Samurai_der_Spasspolitik.html?print=yes. Retrieved on 2008-04-09.
- ^ "Out is In Among German Politicians". Deutsche Welle. 2004-07-23. http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,1273893,00.html. Retrieved on 2007-06-27.
- Guido Westerwelle, the Liberals' Top Gun Profile in Deutsche Welle, 20 July 2005
[edit] External links
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