by Stephen Helgesen
After nine weeks of governing without an actual government, Denmark has stayed true to over a century of tradition and formed yet another coalition government.
This time, however, it is a government that almost nobody wanted but got because of the Danes’ particular practice of “democracy.”
Because the new government is a minority government that cannot be sure of implementing any policies without the tacit approval of a party or parties outside the government (something the Scandinavians call “negative parliamentarianism”), it can be a disastrous path to follow and one that can easily topple a sitting government.
Yesterday, after nine painful weeks of back and forth negotiation and two changes in “royal mediators,” the Danes decided to scrap a previous “red and blue” (conservative and liberal) coalition and instead embrace a full-blown left-wing one that includes the Social Democrats (Socialdemokratiet),
The Socialist People’s Party (Socialistisk Folkeparti) and the Radical Left (Radikale Venstre) along with a small swing party, the Moderates (Moderater). The latter, while professing to stand for conservative values was comfortable in selling out those values to be a part of the new government. Its head, Mr. Lars Løkke Rasmussen, was himself a former prime minister d a former foreign minister (now acting foreign minister until the new government is in power).
Critics claim that Mr. L-R has betrayed his party’s platform and was only concerned with keeping his minister’s job and that’s why he agreed to be a part of the new coalition. Others claim that he joined the coalition to “keep it honest” and keep it from going overboard when they get the power to levy taxes and spend the citizens’ money on new or expanded welfare projects and increase the size of government like the former prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, did while in office.
The jury is still out on which motive is the true one, whether Mr. L-R exhibited real cleverness by staying inside the political circle like a conservative-friendly “mole” that would pull the fire alarm and not support the government if it decided to go completely red. In any event, this new “wag the dog” government has one party, “Enhedslisten,” which is the absolute reddest of the red parties outside the government that has promised to support the governing coalition by giving it their vote while still wielding an effective veto. Then there is the party inside the government (“Moderater” Mr. L-R’s party) with the same power.