After Mrs. Thatcher, no one in the entire European political arena could afford the title of "Iron Lady" for a long time until Merkel appeared.
According to Overseas Network on December 23, as of December 22, Merkel's German Chancellor's term has reached 5,143 days, tying the prime minister's term record set by the first prime minister of Federal German Konrad Adenauer, (Konrad Adenauer), which means Merkel has become the longest-term person in German history.
Recently, Forbes magazine released the list of the 100 most influential women in the world in 2019. Merkel occupied the top spot without any suspense, which is also her 9th consecutive year of ranking.
Since taking office in 2005, Merkel has been in the position of prime minister for 15 years. His three re-elections have allowed Merkel to establish his own "Merkel era" and Germany.
Like Putin, Merkel, who has just taken office, is considered by many to be a transitional leader who temporarily cleans up the "mess". A large part of this is the "black gold case" that shocked Germany in 1999. Schowy Bulle, then chairman of the Democratic League, announced that he would no longer run for the position of party chairman because he was inseparable from the relationship. Merkel was subsequently elected as chairman of the CDU.
Under Merkel's leadership, Germany has become the largest and highest growth rate of economy in Europe. According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics, Merkel's fiscal surplus has been seen for five consecutive years during his tenure, especially in 2018, reaching an astonishing 59.2 billion euros, which is worthy of the title of "Europe's No. 1 economy".
Germany's political status has been unprecedentedly promoted during Merkel's term. It is not without reason that Merkel is called "the actual ruler of the EU". She has allowed Germany to regain the role of leading Europe.
Because of Merkel, Germany's international influence has greatly increased. Whenever there are major natural disasters in the world, Germany is always the first batch of countries to launch humanitarian rescue .
This evergreen in German politics always gives the world a calm feeling, and Merkel fully demonstrates the rigor and conscientiousness of the Germans. It is difficult to see news about Merkel's private life, both domestic and foreign media. It can be said that Merkel devoted almost most of his life to Germany.
Merkel could have become a "nearly perfect" leader, but the refugee crisis that broke out in 2015 changed all this. Out of humanitarian spirit, the Merkel administration did not impose too many restrictions on the surging refugees at the beginning of the crisis.
For a time, Germany became the country that is most loved by refugees and the country that receives the largest number of refugees. On the one hand, Merkel is out of humanitarianism, and on the other hand, she also hopes to increase Germany's labor force by accepting refugees.
However, Germany's social security system cannot support the pressure brought by the huge number of refugees, because of the differences in race, culture and religion, it is difficult for refugees to truly integrate into Germany. In addition, a large number of refugees clashed with German citizens, many people criticized the refugee policy as the biggest "political mistake" since Merkel came to power.
No one is perfect, and Merkel has always faced doubts and criticisms from the outside world on the issue of refugees. Since resigning as president of the CDU in December 2018, Germany has begun to move towards the "post-Merkel" era. The biggest expectation of this totem-like figure in the German political arena is to cultivate or discover successors who can stand up to the banner before leaving office.
