Neither two weeks nor two years heading up the Ministry of Economy and Finance has been sufficient for Elena Salgado to learn the job. She came on to execute Zapatero's Plan E, spending when she should not have been and consequently driving the deficit higher yet. She was wrong in her diagnosis of the crisis when she thought it had already passed.
She started by promising green buds of growth, but it was later apparent that she was the green one. Even though it was obvious what would happen, she still refused to take measures that markets demanded.
Besides patching up pension plans, she initiated weak reforms and was not able to stop a hemorrhaging unemployment situation in Spain. The crisis would have affected us regardless, but Salgado decidedly contributed to our country losing its global image of rigor and discipline. The best we can say about her is that at last she is leaving.
