do we have sarkozy and merkle hand in hand on this? >> well, i think that's what they are trying to get us to think. we'll have to wait until next monday when they get together here in paris and then the busals when they come out with any big bazooka announcement. but they do seem to be edging towards something. i mean, sarkozy was clearly hinting yesterday that the french should be ready to give up an element of their sovereignity. that's always been it, giving up a bit of the euro state is something they cannot do but europe doesn't mean less sovereignity, it means more sovereignity. that's sort of buttering up the french in that they will have to give up a little bit of their sovereignity to europe or budgetting supervision from europe. but it's not clear how much chancellor merkle is willing to give up. that just hasn't been spelled out. >> thank you. they spread far and wide these days. let's take you to china for a moment. we have pictures of hundreds of laid off workers staging a protest outside a shanghai factory. we have manuf

. >> well, as a chance a lot merkle and i have determined, -- as chancellor merkle and i have determined [unintelligible] the question was not audible, but the answer is. we have decided to study the possibility of strengthening the fund to the tune of 200 mi llion euros. the question was have you considered increasing your contribution to the imf? >> yes. it is rooted in our conclusion. i hesitate to say conclusions, because it is not the conclusion of the 27. it is the conclusion of the 17. [speaking french] >> you just heard the french president, nicholas sarkozy, speaking at the press conference, essentially confirming the news that the 27 eurozone members have agreed to that treaty. i can continue on with simon -- who is in the city -- in the studio from me in -- from the economist. sarkozy spoke about bilateral loans to the imf to the tune of 200 billion. >> i think problem with the imf is they are trying to avoid going to the general fund. it -- the biggest call on the imf in the short to medium term is likely to be the eurozone. the eurozone is building up to try to shore up the

i like miss merkle, who is really carrying the problems of the euro zone on her shoulders and we are very much reliant on her. and i would also like to mention the sale six team and the soldiers who are serving all of us so admirably around the world. they get way too little credit. >> rich? >> the muslim brotherhood and their ilk, who are the big short-term winners from the arab spring. >> all right. the new class of political market capitalists, herman cain, mike huckabee, sarah palin, donald trump and everybody else that uses politics as a spring board to business and profits the other way around. >> honorable mention jill abrahamson. executive editor of the "new york times." this year the times hired its first woman to run the paper. on her watch the times now boasts more than 300 how paying digital customers. she may perfect the model that could save newspapers in the internet age. pat, do you have any comments on the foregoing? >> i'm just stunned by your decision, john. >> i must say this is the new feminist john. some of your categories have left me with my mouth agape. so go

>> angela merkle who is in the center of a vast historical mistake in europe. namely, to create an undemocratic european super state. >> eleanor chose my first choice, steve jobs. and i agree he has had more of an impact on this year and future years than other big names. my second choice was angela merkle. >> right. >> that's what happens when you go last. >> we get one person of the year. person of the year is republican congressman paul ryan. that's echoing a thought here earlier. he critically examined the irs tax code and how it effects vis and corporate america. he offered a plan for how to revise the monstrous current u.s. tax code. next week join us for the mclaughlin 2011 awards part two. merry christmas and bye-bye.

when chancellor merkle became chancellor of germany, she asked me to come to her country in the first few weeks of her administration. now remember, germany was the leading exporter power in the world, now it vies with china. strong economy, strongest economy, if you will, in the west. but she asked me to come and ask the question how do we grow the german economy in the 31st century -- 21st century. the first question i asked the chancellor when i got there, madam chancellor, how do you grow the local economy or the global economy in the last stages of an energy era? this is a good question for the united states. how are we actually going to regrow this economy with old energies that are sunsetting, technologies that are exhausted and structure on life support? on the horizon a third industrial revolution. it's just now beginning to emerge in europe in the last 24 months. we've had a very powerful communication revolution in the last 20 years, the internet. and what's so interesting about the internet is this new communication revolution is so different than the one i grew up on on t

and as chancellor merkle has said, the european union with it. >> i certainly agree with my right honorableriend that in the balance of effort that has been given to new treaty powers and changes on the one hand and actually looking at what needs to be done particularly in the short term in terms of the firewall, bank recapitalization and action by the ecb, more needs to be focused on those things rather than on the medium-term power changes in the european union which i don't think are being hovered over by the markets who are working out whether these countries can pay their debts. in that regard, i think the honorable gentleman is right. >> mr. jack straw. >> thank you, mr. speaker. there was no draft treaty before the european council last thursday and friday. there was a set of draft conclusions. would the prime minister set out the paragraph numbers to which he thought britain's interests would be damaged if we agree to them? would he also confirm, would he also confirm that we had a veto on financial transactions tax before last council, we still have one, that financial services reg

and as chancellor merkle has said, the european union with it. >> i certainly agree with my right honorable friend that in the balance of effort that has been given to new treaty powers and changes on the one hand and actually looking at what needs to be done particularly in the short term in terms of the firewall, bank recapitalization and action by the ecb, more needs to be focused on those things rather than on the medium-term power changes in the european union which i don't think are being hovered over by the markets who are working out whether these countries can pay their debts. in that regard, i think the honorable gentleman is right. >> mr. jack straw. >> thank you, mr. speaker. there was no draft treaty before the european council last thursday and friday. there was a set of draft conclusions. would the prime minister set out the paragraph numbers to which he thought britain's interests would be damaged if we agree to them? would he also confirm, would he also confirm that we had a veto on financial transactions tax before last council, we still have one, that financial services r

and as chancellor merkle has said, the european union with it. >> i certainly agree with my right honorable friend that in the balance of effort that has been given to new treaty powers and changes on the one hand and actually looking at what needs to be done particularly in the short term in terms of the firewall, bank recapitalization and action by the ecb, more needs to be focused on those things rather than on the medium-term power changes in the european union which i don't think are being hovered over by the markets who are working out whether these countries can pay their debts. in that regard, i think the honorable gentleman is right. >> mr. jack straw. >> thank you, mr. speaker. there was no draft treaty before the european council last thursday and friday. there was a set of draft conclusions. would the prime minister set out the paragraph numbers to which he thought britain's interests would be damaged if we agree to them? would he also confirm, would he also confirm that we had a veto on financial transactions tax before last council, we still have one, that financial services r