Rust-Belt Rebel Kraft Leads German Charge Against Merkel
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The red brick tower of the state archive in Duisburg soars 250 feet above an old inland shipping port on the River Rhine, a statement of intent that Germany’s most populous region is willing to pay for.
Four times over budget, the converted warehouse project in the former coal-and-steel state of North Rhine-Westphalia is a showcase for the determination of Hannelore Kraft, the region’s Social Democratic leader, to buck the national rush to balance budgets espoused by Chancellor Angela Merkel.