Liechtenstein
The people of Liechtenstein voted to give Prince Hans-Adams II the powers of an absolute monarch after he petulantly threatened to move to Austria. The perpetually tanned, billionaire prince finally won everything he has been demanding for the past 10 years—including the power to appoint and dismiss the government and veto legislation. Hans-Adams’ family has governed the tiny principality of 33,000 people for 284 years, and in recent decades, Liechtenstein has been transformed into a fabulously wealthy tax haven. Today there are more companies registered in Liechtenstein than there are citizens. To make its democratic government perform more efficiently, the prince had insisted, he needed the power to dismiss incompetent elected officials and kill bad laws. The national referendum was bitterly contested; the prince called opponents ingrates and traitors, and vowed to take the royal family into exile if he lost. He won, with 64 percent of the vote. “It’s a very, very pleasing result,” the prince said.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Democrats: How to rebuild a damaged brandFeature Trump's approval rating is sinking, but so is the Democratic brand
-
Unraveling autismFeature RFK Jr. has vowed to find the root cause of the 'autism epidemic' in months. Scientists have doubts.
-
'Two dolls': Can Trump sell Americans on austerity?Feature Trump's tariffs may be threatening holiday shelves but they've handed Democrats a 'huge gift'
