Major Europe leaders limping along

But her domestic approval ratings continue to plunge. A survey by independent polling agency Forsa last week gave her governing coalition just 34 percent support, down sharply from the 48 percent in last September's election.

Her fate is shared by French President Nicolas Sarkozy as well as Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi. The men and woman who run Europe's biggest countries, and who only recently seemed such a breath of fresh air, already look stale. And, to make matters worse, a new generation of leaders is yet to emerge.

With a few exceptions, right-wing parties currently rule in most European Union countries. Dr Merkel, Mr Sarkozy and Mr Berlusconi are not exactly bosom friends. But they do share a similar past: They are all outsiders, people who triumphed by challenging their national political elites.

Dr Merkel was the first woman to make it to the top in a country where politics was the exclusive preserve of men. Initially dismissed as a dowdy upstart from the poorer and supposedly unsophisticated former East Germany, Dr Merkel earned power the hard way: through tenacity, discipline and a thick skin.

Mr Sarkozy, the son of immigrants, was also not the preferred choice of France's political grandees. But he confounded them, survived all their dirty tricks, and became President.

And then, there is Mr Berlusconi, who used his considerable personal wealth to create a new party. The ever-youthful 73-year-old with dyed hair implants and pneumatic blonde girlfriends may have transformed Italy's politics into a never- ending circus. Still, a majority of the electorate repeatedly returned him to power.

Running on a right-wing political agenda while being outsiders gave these three European leaders considerable strength. For they seemed to fuse both tradition and modernity into one, winning support beyond their traditional strongholds.

But as current events indicate, remaining an outsider does carry its own dangers. Germany's Dr Merkel has continued to fight her country's “political barons” — all men — and, in the process, merely succeeded in isolating herself. She recently pushed one of her chief rivals into the largely ceremonial post of German president.

She has lost no fewer than six other state leaders, including the popular mayor of the city of Hamburg who resigned last week. The result is that Dr Merkel reigns supreme over a demoralized party and a resentful nation.

Mr Sarkozy, in constant war against the French political establishment, fared no better. The President's hyperactivity and ostentatious private lifestyle have put off many voters.

The same happened to Mr Berlusconi: Italy's strongman is now challenged by his own finance minister, who seems poised to split the government.

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