Europeans love Barack Obama, as witness the thousands who turned out in Berlin for his president-abroad try out lap during the recent campaign. As have many other anti-Bush individuals and groups, the Obama-loving Europeans now are projecting onto the president-elect their own political agenda and desires.

It was inevitable, as I previously have commented, that tax hungry politicians from socialist Germany and France would continue their long running war against their neighbor Switzerland’s historic bank secrecy.

Now these welfare state tax collectors are trying to enlist Barack Obama in a revved up anti-Swiss campaign to abolish bank secrecy. The Swiss tradition of strict client confidentiality goes back centuries, but was codified in the 1934 Bank Secrecy law as pressure mounted on the country to release client details to Nazi Germany, that wanted to confiscate assets of fleeing Jews.

In spite of the fact that the head of UBS in America bundled more than $800,000 in campaign cash and gave it to Obama, as a candidate Obama singled out Switzerland’s UBS as one of the banks who helped "tax cheats." He also co-sponsored a radical Senate bill last year to crack down on offshore tax havens.

Reports yesterday indicate Obama will make his anti-tax haven legislation a priority early next year when he takes power. Switzerland was one of 34 countries blacklisted as a potential site for tax evasion by U.S. clients by Obama in his bill.

UBS Troubles

UBS, already reeling as Europe’s worst hit bank in the world credit crisis, is under investigation by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service into charges it helped wealthy Americans dodge taxes by hiding their cash in Switzerland. A Swiss newspaper reported that 250 American customers of UBS had been given 30 days to appeal against Switzerland handing over their banking details to the U.S. authorities.

A senior UBS executive was charged in a federal indictment unsealed Wednesday with conspiring to hide $20 billion in assets from the  IRS using secret overseas accounts for thousands of wealthy customers. Raoul Weil, chief executive officer of a UBS division handling cross-border business and private banking, was charged with one count of conspiring to defraud the U.S. through income tax evasion. But the indictment also says other UBS executives at high levels of the company took part in the conspiracy.

Pressure Building

Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey admits pressure is mounting. Asked how Switzerland will respond to the new Obama administration, she said: "It is clear that fiscal questions will come to the forefront and we have to face them, as much from the European Union and as from the United States. That is the logical consequence of the financial crisis."

All of which probably indicates a rough and tumble replay of a years-long series of EU, German, French and U.S. repeated attacks on Swiss bank secrecy.

In my opinion, President Obama and his New Left administration may try to bully offshore tax havens, but mighty Switzerland is no easy pushover.

Switzerland is the world’s leading offshore financial center with about $4 trillion or about 30% of
estimated global offshore assets.

Even marching the U.S. Army (or IRS agents) over the Alps, (Hannibal successfully did it in 219 B.C. with elephants), the Democrat donkies probably wont fare nearly so well.

* While you can there still are many legal ways to bank and save taxes offshore; I tell you Where To Stash Your Cash: Click Here. And if you’re interested in Switzerland, Click here for Swiss Money Secrets.