Is This Feud Really Necessary?

There's nothing quite like a spat between old friends. German chancellor Gerhard Schröeder, who heads a coalition of Social Democrats and Greens, narrowly won re-election last week. But he badly damaged relations with the U.S. during a campaign in which he forcefully opposed a war in Iraq—and his justice minister (since fired) reportedly compared Bush's tactics to Hitler's. The Bushies were furious, and embarked on a post-election campaign of calculated snubs of Schröeder and his deputies. The odd thing is that, for all the Administration's display of pique, the German election turned out about as well as Washington could have hoped. The Green party, led by Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer, was the big winner at the polls, and of all the leading German politicians, he's the one with the most instinctive feel and affection for the U.S. 'I know the United States very well,' he told time. 'Bob Dylan was more important for my political orientation than Karl Marx.' Moreover, Schröeder's defeated opponent, conservative Edmund Stoiber, is close to French President Jacques Chirac, and made little secret of his desire to re-establish the old Franco-German partnership on foreign policy, which would help marginalize U.S. ally Tony Blair in Europe. Not that Schröeder is about to become a Bush booster on Iraq. A 'pre-emptive' war, as one in Iraq would likely be, is unconstitutional in Germany. But, as a British official says, 'It's pretty clear that SchrOeder will try to be as helpful as he can to the U.S. within the constraints of his campaign promises.' The question is whether that will be enough to patch up the family quarrel.