Germany’s likely next chancellor is sparking concern within his centre-right CDU party by repeatedly giving in to the demands of the left-wing Social Democrats (SPD) in order to win power.
Der Tagesspiegel says party members are fuming because Friedrich Merz has already broken his campaign promise not to take on more debt, and struck a deal with the SPD to borrow hundreds of billions of euros to boost defence and infrastructure. The CDU leader has also backtracked on his seemingly tough anti-immigration rhetoric.
The CDU, together with its Bavarian sister party CSU, has to form an alliance with the SPD to have a majority in parliament. Its only other option is the right-wing Alternative für Deutschland (AfD)—a more natural ally if they were interested in pursuing conservative policies—but Merz has ruled out cooperating with them.
The return to the so-called ‘grand coalition’—that ruled the country in 2005-09 and 2013-21—means the CDU has no chance of returning to its conservative roots but has to adhere to the wishes of the SPD, the biggest losers of the recent national elections.
Speaking of the concessions, Johannes Winkel, chairman of the CDU’s youth organisation, the Junge Union, said, “This is a clear defeat for the CDU right at the beginning of the negotiations, because there seem to be no mutual benefits in this great concession made to the Social Democrats.”
The promised U-turn on migration is another issue where Merz has given in to the demands of the SPD. After vowing to turn illegal migrants back at the border once he is elected, he immediately backtracked following the elections on February 23rd, saying “none of us are talking about border closures” to deal with illegal migration.
Echoing Merz, SPD leader Lars Klingbeil stressed in an interview on Wednesday, March 5th that the Social Democrats “will not participate in any de facto border closures.”
In response to his words Johannes Winkel warned that the CDU shouldn’t enter into a government with the SPD unless there is a real U-turn on migration. He added that “the population no longer accepts the combination of open borders for all and an open welfare state for all.”
A recent survey shows that 72% of Germans are in favour of rejecting asylum seekers from safe third countries at the border.
But it seems that Friedrich Merz is unsympathetic towards the mood of the country, and wants to hold onto power at any cost.
