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Begin New Search Political Geography Europe Publication Year within 10 Years

2301. Firm Foundations: The Statistical Footprint of Multinational Corporations as a Problem for Political Economy

Author:
Timur Ergen, Sebastian Kohl, and Benjamin Braun
Publication Date:
11-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Max Planck Sciences Po Center on Coping with Instability in Market Societies (MaxPo)
Abstract:
The discipline of comparative political economy (CPE) relies heavily on aggregate, country- level economic indicators. However, the practices of multinational corporations have increasingly undermined this approach to measurement. The problem of indicator drift is well-documented by a growing critical literature and calls for systematic methodological attention in CPE. We present the case for a rocky but ultimately rewarding middle road between indicator fatalism and indicator faith. We illustrate our argument by examining two important cases – Sweden’s recent export success and the financialization of non-financial corporations in France. A careful parsing of the data suggests corrections to common characterizations of the two cases. Swedish exports have been reshaped by intragroup trade among foreign subsidiaries of domestic corporations. The growth of financial assets held by French firms is attributable to the growth of foreign direct investment and to cumulative revaluation effects, while what remains of financialization is concentrated among the very largest firms. Based on these findings, we propose a methodological routine that parses data by zooming in on the qualitative specifics of countries, sectors, and firms, while using all available options for disaggregation.
Topic:
Political Economy, Economic Growth, Multinational Corporations, and Financialisation
Political Geography:
Europe, France, and Sweden

2302. The Constrained Politics of Local Public Investments under Cooperative Federalism

Author:
Bjorn Bremer, Donato Di Carlo, and Leon Wansleben
Publication Date:
06-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Max Planck Sciences Po Center on Coping with Instability in Market Societies (MaxPo)
Abstract:
Public investment spending declined steadily in advanced economies during the last three decades. Germany is a case in point where the aggregate decline coincided with growing inequality in investments across districts. What explains variation in local investment spending? We assembled a novel dataset to investigate the effects of structural constraints and partisanship on German districts’ investment spending from 1995 to 2018. We find that the lack of fiscal and administrative capacity significantly influences local investment patterns. Yet, within these constraints, partisanship matters. Conservative politicians tend to prioritize public investment more than the left. This is especially the case when revenues from local taxes are low. As the fiscal conditions improve, left-wing politicians increase investment more strongly and hence the difference between the left and the right disappears. Our findings are indicative of how regional economic divergence can emerge even within cooperative federalist systems and show that, despite rigid fiscal rules, partisanship matters when parties face trade-offs over discretionary spending.
Topic:
Politics, Fiscal Policy, Federalism, and Public Investment
Political Geography:
Europe and Germany

2303. Proportionality and Karlsruhe’s Ultra Vires Verdict: Ways Out of Constitutional Pluralism?

Author:
Martin Höpner
Publication Date:
01-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Max Planck Sciences Po Center on Coping with Instability in Market Societies (MaxPo)
Abstract:
In May 2020, for the first time in its history, the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) of Germany declared Union acts as being ultra vires. According to the FCC, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) had acted beyond their mandates because they did not apply strong proportionality standards to the ECB’s Public Sector Purchase Programme (PSPP). The resulting stalemate within constitutional pluralism has revived the discussion about the possible introduction of an Appeal Court with the “final say” over constitutional conflict. As the analysis of the PSPP conflict shows, such a judicial authority would reach its limits the more we move from the surface to the core of the struggles between European and national constitutional law. The different readings of proportionality are difficult to bridge, and the mutually exclusive claims about the nature of the supremacy of European law are not accessible to compromise at all. We should therefore not expect too much from an Appeal Court, if it were introduced.
Topic:
Law, European Union, Constitution, Conflict, European Monetary Union, Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU), and Proportionality
Political Geography:
Europe

2304. Factsheet: Éric Zemmour

Author:
Bridge Initiative Team
Publication Date:
12-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Bridge Initiative, Georgetown University
Abstract:
Éric Zemmour is a far-right French writer and political pundit who supports the “Great Replacement” conspiracy theory, peddles historical revisionism, and has a history of making racist and anti-Muslim comments. He has been fined for and convicted of inciting racial hatred in France. Zemmour formally announced in November 2021 that he is running in the French presidential election in April 2022, and polls indicate that he could have enough support to qualify for the second-round runoff between the two leading contenders.
Topic:
Islamophobia, Far Right, Polls, and Great Replacement Theory
Political Geography:
Europe and France

2305. Factsheet: Documentation Center Political Islam (Dokumentationsstelle Politischer Islam)

Author:
Bridge Initiative Team
Publication Date:
12-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Bridge Initiative, Georgetown University
Abstract:
The Documentation Center Political Islam is a fund of the Republic of Austria according to the Law on Trusts and Funds 2015. It was established in July 2020 by the center-right New Austrian People’s Party’s (ÖVP), which has instituted a number of anti-Muslim policies. The Center’s academic advisory board hosts several experts who hold anti-Muslim views. The Center has usually presented its output alongside the Minister of Integration Affairs.
Topic:
Islamophobia, Far Right, Political Parties, and Muslims
Political Geography:
Europe and Austria

2306. Factsheet: Heiko Heinisch

Author:
Bridge Initiative Team
Publication Date:
03-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Bridge Initiative, Georgetown University
Abstract:
Heiko Heinisch is a German political commentator and writer on Islamism. Heinisch is often presented as an expert on Islam and Islamism by the far-right Austrian government and the Austrian media. He serves on the academic advisory board of Austria’s Documentation Center for Political Islam, a federally funded center for monitoring, surveilling and mapping Muslims in Austria.
Topic:
Surveillance, Islamophobia, Far Right, and Islamism
Political Geography:
Europe, Germany, and Austria

2307. Factsheet: Mouhanad Khorchide

Author:
Bridge Initiative Team
Publication Date:
03-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Bridge Initiative, Georgetown University
Abstract:
Mouhanad Khorchide is professor of Islamic pedagogy at the University of Münster in Germany. He has authored several books on Islam and is a frequent media commentator on Islam and Muslims. Khorchide is a member of several political initiatives calling for the reform of Islam and he supports discriminatory state policies, including the hijab ban. He heads the advisory board for Austria’s Documentation Center for Political Islam—a project that monitors movements that do not pose a security-related threat and is “part of the national strategy of extremism prevention and deradicalization.”
Topic:
Islam, Domestic Politics, Discrimination, Academia, and Muslims
Political Geography:
Europe and Germany

2308. Factsheet: Elham Manea

Author:
Bridge Initiative Team
Publication Date:
03-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Bridge Initiative, Georgetown University
Abstract:
Elham Manea is a Yemeni Swiss political scientist, writer, and activist based in Switzerland. Manea has served as an advisor to several governments, including Austria, on issues related to the surveillance and criminalization of Muslims. Manea has also worked with anti-Muslim organizations in Europe and the United States, including the Clarion Project, the AHA Foundation, the European Foundation for Democracy, and the Secular Policy Institute. Manea presents herself as a formerly “radicalized” person with “insider” knowledge on “extremism,” particularly “non-violent extremism,” “Islamism” and “political Islam.”
Topic:
Surveillance, Islamophobia, Political Islam, Criminalization, and Elham Manea
Political Geography:
Europe and Switzerland

2309. Factsheet: Tommy Robinson

Author:
Tommy Robinson
Publication Date:
05-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Bridge Initiative, Georgetown University
Abstract:
Tommy Robinson is a British anti-Muslim and anti-immigration activist. A co-founder of the racist English Defense League, Robinson believes Islam is a “disease” and Muslims are invading Europe. He has been connected to trans-national anti-Muslim activists and organizations, including PEGIDA. Robinson has had numerous criminal convictions and is currently serving time in jail.
Topic:
Islam, Far Right, Muslims, Tommy Robinson, and English Defense League (EDL)
Political Geography:
Britain, United Kingdom, and Europe

2310. Factsheet: Unaccompanied Minor Children (Los Menas)

Author:
Bridge Initiative Team
Publication Date:
05-2021
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Bridge Initiative, Georgetown University
Abstract:
MENAs (Menor Extranjero no Acompañado, or “Unaccompanied Foreign Minors”) is the term used to describe minors (under the age of eighteen) who arrive in Spain with no parents or guardians. The children come primarily from North Africa and are predominately Muslim. In recent years, right-wing politicians and groups in Spain have targeted and stigmatized them by employing anti-Muslim tropes.
Topic:
Migration, Muslims, Unaccompanied Minors, and Los Menas
Political Geography:
Europe, Spain, and North Africa