Social Democrats (SPD) - Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association

Germany’s Left party plans to scrap NATO, end troop deployments

Deutsche Welle — Mon, 21 Jun 2021 23:38:44 +0000

The socialist Left party has adopted its policy platform for Germany’s September general election. Internationally, it is calling for NATO to be replaced and an end to troop deployments.

Among its manifesto commitments, the party advocates an end to all arms exports

Germany’s Left party (Die Linke) on Sunday adopted a national platform with a focus on social care that also calls for the NATO alliance to be scrapped.

Although the party has no realistic chance of forming a government, it could have a say in policy as part of a future coalition.

What is the Left party promising?

Foreign policy: An end to all foreign deployments of the Germany’s military, the Bundeswehr. The party wants to replace NATO with a collective security system involving Russia. In addition, the party advocates an end to all arms exports.

Climate change: An energy revamp with a focus on renewable energy. The party also wants to phase out coal by 2030 at the latest and to see Germany climate-neutral by 2035.

Transport: The manifesto would commit to a goal of local public transport free of charge, and for rail travel to also become cheaper. There would also be a ban on domestic flights of less than 500 kilometers (310 miles).

Christian Democratic Union (CDU)

The CDU has traditionally been the main center-right party across Germany, but it shifted toward the center under Chancellor Angela Merkel. The party remains more fiscally and socially conservative compared to parties on the left. It supports membership of the EU and NATO, budgetary discipline at home and abroad, and generally likes the status quo. It is the largest party in the Bundestag.

Christian Social Union (CSU)

The CSU is the sister party of the CDU in Bavaria and the two-act symbiotically at the national level (CDU/CSU). Despite their similarities, the CSU is generally more conservative than the CDU on social issues. The CSU leader and premier of Bavaria, Markus Söder, ordered crosses in every state building in 2018.

Social Democrats (SPD)

The SPD is Germany’s oldest political party and the main center-left rival of the CDU/CSU. It shares the CDU/CSU support for the EU and NATO, but it takes a more progressive stance on social issues and welfare policies. It is currently in a coalition government with the CDU/CSU and is trying to win back support under interim leaders Thorsten Schäfer-Gümbel, Manuela Schwesig and Malu Dreyer.

Alternative for Germany (AfD)

The new kid on the block is the largest opposition party in the Bundestag. The far-right party was founded in 2013 and entered the Bundestag for the first time in 2017 under the stewardship of Alice Weidel and Alexander Gauland. It is largely united by opposition to Merkel’s immigration policy, Euroscepticism, and belief in the alleged dangers posed by Germany’s Muslim population.

Free Democrats (FDP)

The FDP has traditionally been the kingmaker of German politics. Although it has never received more than 15 percent of the vote, it has formed multiple coalition governments with both the CDU/CSU and SPD. The FDP, today led by Christian Lindner, supports less government spending and lower taxes but takes a progressive stance on social issues such as gay marriage or religion.

The Greens

The Greens, led today by Annalena Baerbock and Robert Habeck, emerged from the environmental movement in the 1980s. Unsurprisingly, it supports efforts to fight climate change and protect the environment. It is also progressive on social issues. But strong divisions have occasionally emerged on other topics. The party famously split in the late 1990s over whether to use military force in Kosovo.

The Left

The Left, led by Katja Kipping and Bernd Riexinger, is the most left-wing party in the Bundestag. It supports major redistribution of wealth at home and a pacifist stance abroad, including withdrawing Germany from NATO. It emerged from the successor party to the Socialist Unity Party (SED) that ruled communist East Germany until 1989. Today, it still enjoys most of its support in eastern Germany.

Author: Alexander Pearson

Immigration: The party advocates residence and work permits regardless of employment duration and for the qualifications of non-EU citizens to be recognized. It rejects the notion of deportation, especially where war and persecution are a reality.

Social care: The party wants 200,000 more nursing staff in hospitals and nursing homes, and an increase in basic pay for employees. It also wants a statutory staffing level, and for hospital and care groups to be transferred to public ownership.

Tax: The party advocates a wealth tax with a progressive rate and an exemption amount for private assets of €1 million ($1.2 million). It also wants a tax rate of 53% from €70,000. A wealth tax of 60% is to be levied on incomes of just under €261,000, and 75% on incomes of over €1 million.

Labor: A minimum wage of €13 (currently €9.50). Temporary employment and fixed-term contracts without a fixed term would be abolished. The party also proposes a four-day week of around 30 hours as a normal work model.

Health: A rent cap throughout Germany. The Left party also wants to promote social housing construction with €15 billion annually.

Pensions: The Left party wants to introduce a minimum pension of €1,200. Instead of retirement at 67, employees should again be able to retire at 65 at the latest without deductions.

Janine Wissler and Dietmar Bartsch, who are the co-leader of the party and the co-leader of its parliamentary faction respectively, are to be the party’s flagbearers in the lead up to the September 26 election.

rc/nm (AFP, dpa)

Source: https://www.dw.com/en/germanys-left-party-plans-to-scrap-nato-end-troop-deployments/a-57973017

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Germany: Angela Merkel’s party to decide her successor in January

Deutsche Welle — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 01:00:51 +0000

There are three contenders for leadership of Angela Merkel’s center-right CDU party. The winner will be decided in mid-January.

The next leader of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) will be decided in mid-January, the party announced on Saturday.

The three candidates — Friedrich Merz, Armin Laschet and Norbert Röttgen — agreed to the date for the party congress, CDU general secretary Paul Ziemiak announced on Twitter. It was originally scheduled for December 4 but was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“Unity in the CDU is important for Germany, particularly in such difficult times,” Ziemiak said. He said the candidates hoped to be able to hold the meeting in person, but that it may take place digitally.

More details will be decided on December 14.

Friedrich Merz: Longstanding Merkel critic

The ex-leader of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag withdrew from frontline politics in 2009. He made a comeback in 2018 when he joined the CDU leadership race, losing narrowly to AKK. Merz recently quit his post as chairman at BlackRock, the world’s largest investment management firm, to “help the conservative party renew itself.” He appeals to the CDU’s conservative members.

Jens Spahn: Young contender backs Laschet

The 40-year-old surprised political onlookers on February 25, when he stood beside Laschet to support the state premier’s candidacy announcement. Spahn, who is openly gay, is popular in the CDU’s conservative wing. “It is about the future of the country and the future of our party,” Spahn said on his decision to back Laschet.

Armin Laschet: Affable state premier

Laschet, a journalist and former European Parliament member, has headed Germany’s most populous state of North Rhine-Westphalia since 2017. The liberal-conservative is a Merkel supporter — and backed her in the 2015 refugee crisis. Another “Pizza Connection” member, he is known for being able to work with both the FDP and Greens, which may be the most likely coalition setup in the next government.

Norbert Röttgen: Potential Greens ally

Röttgen served as environment minister under Merkel from 2009-2012. He now heads the Bundestag’s foreign affairs committee. He designed Germany’s energy transition plan and is seen as someone who could work with the Greens, the party polling second. He was also part of the “Pizza Connection,” a group of CDU and Greens MPs that held meetings in the ’90s and early 2000s.

Author: Rina Goldenberg

2021 elections without Merkel

Merkel led the party from 2000 to 2018, and has led the country as chancellor since 2005. She has announced her intention not to seek a fifth term as chancellor.

Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer took over party leadership in 2018 and had been presented as Merkel’s successor as chancellor candidate. However, she bowed out in February after failing to secure public confidence, leading to the new round of leadership selection.

The next party leader would have a strong chance of being picked to run for chancellor, although that is not automatic.

Germany must hold its next federal election by October 24, 2021.

Popularity boost amid pandemic

The CDU is polling well after its relatively successful handling of the pandemic. However, infection rates are soaring and voters are bracing for a second partial lockdown and a difficult winter.

Former businessman and conservative Merz, 64, is polling better than both Laschet, 59 — who is premier of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and more liberal — and Röttgen, 55, a foreign policy expert. But the party elite favor Laschet.

The CDU is the largest party in the Bundestag and leads Germany in a coalition with its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), and the Social Democrats (SPD).

Merz has accused “parts of the party establishment” of acting to prevent him from becoming leader. Politics Podcast: Merkel’s Last Dance

The open accusations are unusual for the traditionally disciplined party, prompting current chairwoman Kramp-Karrenbauer to urge the candidates not to engage in “discussions that damage the CDU as a whole,” in comments to Der Spiegel news magazine.

After Saturday’s announcement, Merz said on Twitter that he “very much” welcomed the agreement: “It is a good compromise that we have agreed on today.

Laschet also declared on Twitter that the CDU needs “clarity for the next year.”

“Our joint proposal serves this purpose,” he added.

Röttgen too said he was very pleased “that we have come to a good solution for the federal party congress together.”

Olaf Scholz

Plumbing new depths with each election, the SPD decided to run a realist rather than a radical as their top candidate in 2021. Finance Minister Olaf Scholz, a former mayor of Hamburg, is seen as dry and technocratic. Many in his party say the 62-year-old is unlikely to energize party activists and win their hearts.

Markus Söder

Bavaria’s 53-year-old state premier from the CDU’s more conservative Bavarian sister party, the CSU, has profited in opinion polls from his tough line in the fight against the coronavirus. “Bavaria is strong. Bavaria will grow. Bavaria is solid. Bavaria is safe. Here the world is still in order, and it will stay that way,” the former journalist said at the beginning of his tenure in 2018.

Armin Laschet

Armin Laschet, a staunch supporter of Angela Merkel, heads Germany’s most populous state. Staunch conservatives routinely underestimated the jovial 58-year-old, famous for his belief in integration and compromise. But recently, his liberal non-interventionist instincts have led to him eating his words more than once during the coronavirus crisis.

Jens Spahn

Health Minister Jens Spahn, the Christian Democrats’ rising star, has benefitted from the publicity he gained during the coronavirus pandemic. Openly gay, married, still only 40, with unusually strong English skills, Spahn is a more modern Catholic CDU politician than one could have imagined even a few years ago.

Robert Habeck

50-year-old Robert Habeck, an enthused and passionate speaker, can match the tone and energy of the climate movement in a way many German politicians cannot. But like so many with the gift of the gab, his speeches tend to meander off-topic. Habeck has a Ph.D. in philosophy and was a novelist and children’s author before entering politics almost 20 years ago.

Annalena Baerbock

At not yet 40, Annalena Baerbock has been a Green Party co-chair since 2018. A jurist with a degree in public international law from the London School of Economics, her supporters see her as a safe pair of hands with a better grasp of detail than Habeck. Her opponents point to her lack of governing or ministerial experience and her occasional gaffes in interviews.

Author: Mark Hallam, Rina Goldenberg

aw/nm (dpa, AFP, Reuters, AP)

Source: https://www.dw.com/en/germany-angela-merkels-party-to-decide-her-successor-in-january/a-55461472

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Angela Merkel’s conservatives, far-right AfD punished in German state vote

Madeline Chambers — Mon, 24 Feb 2020 04:30:57 +0000

A poster depicting Bjoern Hoecke of Alternative for Germany (AfD) and reading “Never again” is pictured outside the Midnight Shisha bar in Hanau, near Frankfurt, Germany, February 22, 2020. Projected results indicated that AfD would be ejected from the Hamburg parliament just four days after the Hanau attack. –RALPH ORLOWSKI/REUTERS

Voters handed German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives their worst-ever result in Hamburg on Sunday, punishing them for flirting with the far-right in an eastern state and descending into a messy leadership battle.

Preliminary results also showed the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) just scraping into the Hamburg parliament, only four days after a racist gunman killed 11 people, including himself, in the western town of Hanau.

The Social Democrats (SPD) and Greens celebrated in Germany’s second-biggest city after taking first and second place, meaning they will probably keep ruling together in the northern port and city-state.

The conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) suffered after party leader and Merkel protege Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said she would stand aside, blowing open the race to succeed the chancellor and throwing the party into turmoil.

The CDU slipped into third place, scoring just 11.2 percent. The AfD, which has capitalized on anger over Merkel’s open-door migrant policy, especially in the former Communist East, won 5.3 percent, just over the 5 percent threshold needed to get into the state parliament, according to the preliminary results.

Kramp-Karrenbauer’s move came after an eastern branch of the CDU defied the national party and voted with the AfD to install a state premier from a third party – breaking a postwar consensus among established parties of shunning the far-right.

“It is a bitter day for the CDU in Germany and a historically bad result in Hamburg,” said CDU Secretary-General Paul Ziemiak.

The CDU leadership team meets on Monday and Kramp-Karrenbauer is expected to set out a timetable for a decision on the party chair and possibly the chancellor candidate. Four or five candidates are jockeying for the jobs.

Merkel, chancellor for almost 15 years, has said she will not run again in the next federal election, due by October 2021.

Preliminary results put the SPD, who share power with the conservatives at the federal level, down about 6 points from the last vote in 2015 but on 39.1 percent, still by the far the biggest party in Hamburg.

The Greens were the biggest winners, reflecting their national strength driven by growing fears about climate change. They almost doubled their vote to 24.1 percent and national co-leader Robert Habeck declared it a “fantastic result”.

Nationally, the Greens are second, behind the conservative bloc, and many commentators expect them to have a role in the next federal government.

Source: https://beta.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-angela-merkels-conservatives-far-right-afd-punished-in-german-state/

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German right-wing extremists planned ‘hunt’ of migrants: reports

Deutsche Welle — Tue, 27 Aug 2019 00:37:56 +0000

A police report seen by German media has found that extreme-right protesters explicitly tried to violently chase down foreigners. Disagreement over whether such a “hunt” took place nearly toppled the German government.

New details have emerged in the investigation into the August 2018 demonstrations in Chemnitz that show extreme right-wing individuals made specific plans to “hunt” migrants and foreign-looking individuals, German media reported.

The news sheds further details on the events one year ago that resulted in Chemnitz taking center stage in discussions on the prevalence of right-wing extremism in Germany and that nearly caused the downfall of Angela Merkel’s national coalition government.

A ‘great readiness to use violence’ in Chemnitz

According to research by German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung, and broadcasters WDR and NDR, the Saxony Criminal Police Office evaluated chat messages exchanged between known members of Chemnitz’s extreme right scene between August 26 and 28.

On August 26, a German national was killed in a stabbing in Chemnitz. Non-German nationals were suspected of the crime, with a 23-year-old Syrian national recently convicted of manslaughter in the crime.

The stabbing led to a week of far-right protests in the city that drew neo-Nazis from across Germany and saw migrants or foreign-looking individuals chased in the streets.

Social media was also used to draw right-wing extremists from across Germany to Chemnitz to take part in anti-immigrant protests

The Saxony report summarized that the demonstrations were marked by “great readiness to use violence against police officials, people with actual or immigrant backgrounds, political opponents and journalists,” the Süddeutsche Zeitung said.

The report also stated that the chat participants used the word “hunt” (“Jagd”) repeatedly as the events in Chemnitz were ongoing, and described wanting to or having violently attacked people of immigrant background.

The document also states that the chat participants boasted among themselves about having successfully hunted supposed migrants.

The chats point to “the actual implementation of violent criminal acts against foreigners,” the report read.

The right-wing violence in Chemnitz unleashed a debate over whether or not foreigners and foreign-looking individuals had been specifically targeted and pursued.

Evidence against doubts that shook the government

The then-president of Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, Hans-Georg Maassen, disputed the idea that such a hunt had taken place and openly questioned the authenticity of videos showing foreign-looking individuals being chased.

Maassen was initially promoted into a different position before being forced into retirement. The events almost toppled Merkel’s government.

The doubts expressed by Maassen, a member of Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrats (CDU), as well as his closeness to the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, triggered a crisis that nearly brought down the government coalition. The co-governing Social Democrats (SPD) demanded his removal. Maassen was eventually forced into retirement.

The Saxony police report is part of an investigation into the August 2018 Chemnitz events and is in the hands of the attorney general’s office for further evaluation.

Death sparks demonstrations

The demonstrations were sparked by a deadly brawl that broke out in the German city of Chemnitz in the early hours of Sunday (August 26). What started out as a war of words resulted in a 35-year-old man being stabbed to death. Hours later, spontaneous, anti-migrant protests took over the streets of Chemnitz.

German-Cuban killed

A German-Cuban man was stabbed in an altercation involving 10 people, several of whom were of “various nationalities,” police sources said. The victim, named only as Daniel H., was apparently well-known among various political groups in the area. Two men in their 30s were also stabbed and seriously injured, and a 22-year-old Iraqi and 23-year-old Syrian are in custody over the killing.

Police reinforcements called

By Sunday afternoon, some 800 people had gathered to protest the man’s death, including far-right groups. Authorities said the crowd was largely uncooperative and threw bottles at police officers. Police reinforcements had to be called in from nearby cities. The mobilizations were spontaneous and are thought to have surfaced following calls to demonstrate on social media.

Misinformation

German authorities said that those far-right groups spread misinformation on the internet. Among the false claims was that the victim of the knife attack died protecting a woman.

Protests and counterprotests

Thousands of far-right and counterdemonstrators faced off in a second day of protest Monday. Several people were injured as objects and fireworks were hurled. Video footage showed the far-right “Pro Chemnitz” movement holding a banner with a quote from early 20th-century poet Anton Günther reading “German and free we aim to be.”

‘No place for Nazis’

Counter-demonstrators denouncing right-wing extremism also took to the streets of Chemnitz. Among the protesters were Antifa, who clashed with right-wing demonstrators.

Author: Louisa Wright

Source: https://www.dw.com/en/german-right-wing-extremists-planned-hunt-of-migrants-reports/a-50176487

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Merkel ally calls for Europe to go it alone in the Gulf

Justin Huggler and Josie Ensor - The Telegraph — Thu, 01 Aug 2019 19:57:05 +0000

Britain has already deployed the destroyer, HMS Duncan, to protect shipping from seizure by Iran – CREDIT: LA(PHOTO) BEN SUTTON/MOD/PA

A key ally of Angela Merkel has called for Europe to set up its own naval task force in the Persian Gulf independent of the US.

Amid a widening divide between Western allies over how to deal with Iran, Norbert Röttgen called on Thursday for France and Germany to lead a European mission to protect shipping from Iran.

The UK has sought to build consensus for an international task force following the seizure of a British-flagged tanker by Iran.

But France and Germany have rejected calls to contribute warships to a US-led mission over concerns at Donald Trump’s aggressive stance towards Iran.

Mr. Röttgen, who is chairman of the German parliament’s powerful foreign affairs committee, called on Thursday for Europe to go it alone.

“The reasons for a European mission in the Gulf remain, even if Britain should decide on a joint mission with the US,” he said.

“It’s about European interests, not specific British ones, so a European mission should be made up of a group of European states, to which France and Germany must belong.”

Jeremy Hunt, the former foreign secretary, initially called for a European-led taskforce in response to the seizure of the Stena Impero last month.

But Boris Johnson’s government has shifted the UK position, with Dominic Raab, the new foreign secretary, suggesting a European mission may not be “viable” without US support.

Mr. Röttgen’s comments come amid signs of a rift in Mrs. Merkel’s coalition government over the issue.

Olaf Scholz, the vice-chancellor, appeared to rule out German contributing to a US-led task force on Wednesday, only to be contradicted by Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, the defense minister, who said the proposal was still being considered.

But despite Ms. Kramp-Karrenbauer’s comments, German involvement remains unlikely. Any military deployment needs parliamentary approval in Germany, and with Mr. Scholz’s centre-Left Social Democrats (SPD) opposed, there is no majority in favor.

Mohammed Javad Zarif, the Iranian foreign minister, faces new US sanctions CREDIT: EVGENIA NOVOZHENINA /REUTERS

German and French concerns are understood to center on the Trump administration’s increasingly belligerent tone towards Iran, amid fears any incident could be seized on by US hardliners as a pretext for war.

The European Union spoke out yesterday against a decision by the US to impose sanctions on Iran’s foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif.

“We regret this decision,” a spokesman for Federica Mogherini, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs, said.

“From our side, we will continue to work with Mr. Zarif as Iran’s most senior diplomat, and in view of the importance of maintaining diplomatic channels.”

The decision means Iran’s chief negotiator will now have to seek special permission to enter the US to attend the United Nations.

Hassan Rouhani, the Iranian president, accused the US of “resorting to childish behavior” over the sanctions.

“They were claiming every day, ‘We want to talk, with no preconditions’ and then they sanction the foreign minister,” Mr. Rouhani said.

Source: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/08/01/merkel-ally-calls-europe-go-alone-gulf/

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Germany to soften ‘advertising’ ban on abortions

The Japan Times — Tue, 29 Jan 2019 03:53:14 +0000

BERLIN – Germany’s coalition government agreed in principle Tuesday to soften a Nazi-era law that bars medical doctors from advertising abortion services.

Gynecologists, hospitals and public health services will now be allowed to share essential information about where and how women can terminate unwanted pregnancies.

The bill is expected to be approved by Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Cabinet on Feb. 6 and then pass both houses of parliament.

German law allows abortions but effectively discourages them through various hurdles, including the law in question, article 219a, which dates to May 1933, shortly after Adolf Hitler assumed full powers of Nazi Germany.

Last year gynecologist Kristina Haenel was fined €6,000 ($6,800) for breaking the law by publishing information on abortion services on her website.

The case revived an emotional debate in the coalition government led by Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrats (CDU).

Junior partners the Social Democrats (SPD) wanted the article scrapped, a demand backed by leftist opposition parties the Greens and Die Linke.

In the end the ruling parties reached a compromise that many read as a defeat for the SPD.

Health Minister Jens Spahn of the CDU said women needed access to crucial information but added that abortions should not be advertised because they are “not a medical procedure like any other.”

Andrea Nahles, the SPD leader, nonetheless welcomed the agreement, tweeting that “women are finally getting the information they need.”

The draft bill seen by AFP would allow federal health authorities and the German Medical Association to publish nationwide lists of doctors who perform abortions.

In other changes, the age limit for women entitled to free contraceptives would be raised from 20 to 22 years, and training on performing abortions will be expanded for medical students.

Greens Party co-chief Annalena Baerbock criticized the compromise deal, arguing that it signals lingering “distrust” of a woman’s ability to choose.

Linke party lawmaker Cornelia Moehring similarly charged that, by refusing to scrap the article outright, the government was continuing to treat abortion as “a grubby issue” and a “taboo subject.”

Germany, despite being a leading voice for women’s rights in the 1970s, imposes tight restrictions on abortion, permitting it only under strictly regulated circumstances.

It is left out of universities’ course books for student doctors and kept unavailable in swathes of the country.

A woman who wants to abort within the first trimester is required to attend a consultation at a registered centre.

The aim of the interview is to “incite the woman to continue the pregnancy,” according to the rules, even if in the end she has the final say.

Excluding special circumstances such as a pregnancy that threatens the life of the mother, or one arising from rape, abortion is not a procedure that is reimbursable by health insurance.

In some regions, including in the predominantly Catholic state of Bavaria, it may be necessary to travel 100 kilometers to find a doctor who performs the procedure.

Germany records an average of 100,000 abortions for 790,000 births, about half the rate of neighboring France.

Source: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/01/29/world/social-issues-world/germany-soften-advertising-ban-abortions/#.XFEf_lxKiUk

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The end of Germany’s two-party system is on the horizon

Irish Examiner — Fri, 26 Oct 2018 05:56:41 +0000

This weekend’s regional election in Germany will provide further proof of a fragmenting political landscape, writes Slawomir Sierakowski.

The German Social Democrats’ (SPD) existential crisis can no longer be treated as a typical party crisis. The party captured a mere 9.7% of the vote in regional elections in Bavaria this month, and it is trailing the populist Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) and the Greens in national opinion polls.

With another important regional election next week in Hesse, polls indicate that the SPD will lose still more support, though not as dramatically as in Bavaria.

The SPD and the Christian Democratic Union/ Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) have stood as the twin pillars of German politics since the end of World War II. However, with the SPD declining, Germany is moving from a de facto two-party system to a multiparty system in which no single party plays a dominant role.

The German post-war consensus is collapsing in key areas: history (attitudes toward WWII); geopolitics (attitudes toward Russia); the economy (attitudes toward the car industry); and ethics (attitudes toward refugees).

This is reflected in the fracturing of the political scene.

German voters have rejected the longstanding CDU/ CSU-SPD “grand coalition”. Whereas smaller parties once functioned as mere subsidiaries of either the SPD or the CDU/ CSU, the bit players are now eclipsing the former stars.

Moreover, what was once “Red Munich” has now turned Green. Whereas cities had long been SPD strongholds, they are switching to the Greens and other smaller parties. Making matters worse for the SPD, the demographic profile of its core electorate amounts to a death sentence. Only 8% of SPD voters are under the age of 30, and 54% are over 60. By contrast, just 24% of Greens are over 60. And Die Linke, meanwhile, has become increasingly attractive to younger new leftists and ageing post-communists from the former East Germany.

Just as a two-party system ensures stability and predictability, so might its collapse contribute to radical social change. By definition, the fall of the establishment implies the rise of the anti-establishment, often in the form of populism.

Since 2005, the SPD has participated as the minority partner in three grand-coalition governments. As a result, it has come to be associated with the status quo, even though it hasn’t been able to claim direct credit for the previous governments’ successes.

Something similar happened in Austria, where the Social Democratic Party ruled either alone or in conjunction with the Austrian People’s Party between 1971 and 1999 (except for 1983-1986). Such long periods of grand-coalition rule allowed for the right-wing populist Freedom Party of Austria to present itself as an agent for change.

When a grand coalition is threatened, its members tend to panic. Those who toe the party line lose support, as German chancellor Angela Merkel has. Others thus attempt to appropriate populist language, as CSU leader Horst Seehofer has done in recent months, while still others will try to associate themselves with new political platforms.

Hence, Alexander Dobrindt of the CSU has promised a “conservative revolution,” while Martin Schulz, the erstwhile leader of the SPD, has promoted EU federation.

At any rate, when the constituent parts of a coalition start moving in different directions, things quickly fall apart. Still, it is worth noting that while the SPD and the CDU are currently losing support, their ideas remain popular.

Their problem is not that they are devoid of ideas, but that they lack political credibility.

This credibility deficit has created a vacuum for other parties to fill. Thus, the Greens have made gains in Bavaria by supporting an open-door refugee policy that actually originated with the CDU/SPD.

Likewise, the AfD has wrested the anti-refugee mantle away from the CSU and Seehofer, who went so far as to try to undermine Merkel’s government from within while serving as Minister of the Interior. The common thread connecting all of the parties that performed well in the Bavarian election is that they ran politicians who are at least consistent in their views.

Unfortunately for Germany, multiparty systems are generally unstable and less predictable, which explains why every other European country, Latvia is a current example, constantly struggles to establish a governing coalition.

Under such conditions, it is not uncommon for bizarre arrangements to arise, including coalitions between the far left and the far right, as we have seen in Greece, Italy, and Slovakia.

Germany’s best hope now is that its newly emerging multiparty system will impede the progress of the AfD, by nullifying its anti-establishment appeal. The AfD will take its place on the radical right as one party among many.

Its support will remain in the 10% to 20% range, but it will not go any further than that. In fact, this has already happened in Bavaria, where the AfD garnered 10.2% of the vote this month, down from the 12.4% that it received in last year’s federal election.

Another potential silver lining to a multiparty system is that it might lead to more political engagement. In the case of Bavaria, voter participation rose to 72.4% this election cycle, up from 63.6% five years ago.

Looking ahead, Germany may now end up with rotating coalition governments comprising multiple parties.

For example, one could imagine an arrangement between the CDU/CSU, the Free Democrats, and the Greens – the so-called Jamaica coalition.

However, this scenario would likely produce political paralysis, because politicians from competing parties within the coalition would constantly undercut one another other while pandering to the popular will. Moreover, the chancellorship will always be weaker in a patchwork government.

Most likely, the fall of the CDU/CSU-SPD duopoly will undermine German hegemony in Europe, even if no other country can replace Germany in that role. At the same time, the weakening of the SPD will diminish the socialist faction in the European Parliament, where a similar eclipse of two-party rule could be in the offing.

Yet without the twin pillars of the European People’s Party and the Party of European Socialists, the parliament will be incapable of making even insignificant decisions.

As Germany and the SPD go, so goes Europe.

Slawomir Sierakowski, founder of the Krytyka Polityczna movement, is director of the Institute for Advanced Study in Warsaw and a fellow at the nRobert Bosch Academy in Berlin.

Source: https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/views/analysis/the-end-of-germanys-two-party-system-is-on-the-horizon-881213.html

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MERKEL ON BRINK: Chancellor facing SECOND election beating in Hesse as AfD support soars

Alice Scarsi — Thu, 18 Oct 2018 07:09:09 +0000

ANGELA Merkel faces a second defeat in less than two weeks as polls show a massive drop in the support to the Chancellor’s party in the state of Hesse – while far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) looks set to be represented in all the states.

The German Chancellor’s party, the CDU, is to receive only 26 percent of the votes at the upcoming state election in Hesse, according to a survey by pollster Forschungsgruppe Wahlen for broadcaster ZDF.

This would represent a 12 percent drop for Mrs Merkel’s party compared to the Chancellor’s results in the region’s last election in 2013, when the party won 38.3 percent of the seats.

The Social Democrats (SPD), one of Mrs Merkel’s government allies at a national level,is predicted to fall to 20 percent, far below its result of 30.7 percent in 2013, the survey showed.

While the SPD and the CDU’s popularity is falling, the Greens and the AfD are booming.

The Greens will be the big winner in the federal state, the poll showed, jumping into second place with 22 percent support, right after the CDU.

The AfD could gain as much as 12 percent of the votes, a result that would make the party be represented in all state parliaments of Germany for the first time.

A similar outcome would force Mrs Merkel’s party to seek a three-party coalition, as it has happened already in the national parliament after the September 2017 election.

The CDU is likely to form a coalition with Greens and liberal FDP, dubbed ‘Jamaica’ because these parties’ colours match the Jamaican national flag.

Angela Merkel faces a defeat at the state election in Hesse (Image: GETTY)

The FDP’s support looks set to gather 8 percent of the votes, according to the poll.

But a successful outcome of such talks is far from being certain, as Mrs Merkel saw negotiations on forming a Jamaica government at the national level collapsing earlier this year, before she struck a deal with the CDU’s sister party CSU and SDP.

Hesse, a central Germany state home to the financial centre of Frankfurt, will vote on October 28, 14 days after the Bavarian election that saw the CSU suffering its weakest election performance since 1950 in a state vote, losing 16 seats, while the SDP lost 20 seats.

Their losses paved the way to a big win for the Greens and the AfD, who respectively gained 20 and 22 seats in the regional parliament.

Mrs Merkel would be left extremely weakened by a second defeat at the ballot, both at a national level and within her own party.

Angela Merkel’s party looks set to lose 12 percent of the seats at the October 28 elections (Image: GETTY)

Angela Merkel will face her party members at a CDU congress in December (Image: GETTY)

The Chancellor is to face her own party members at a CDU annual gathering in December.

If she does not emerge well from those events, her opponents will be emboldened.

Forschungsgruppe Wahlen polled 1,035 voters in Hesse from Monday October 15 to Wednesday October 17.

(Additional reporting by Monika Pallenberg)

Source: https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1033429/angela-merkel-hesse-election-germany-poll-bavaria-election-result-CDU-results-afd-seats

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Migration dispute in Germany over for now as coalition reaches deal

Judith Vonberg and Nadine Schmidt, CNN — Fri, 06 Jul 2018 11:31:32 +0000

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and now Interior Minister Horst Seehofer at a rally in Munich in September 2017.

Berlin (CNN) Germany’s three-party coalition reached an agreement on a key migration policy Thursday night, ending, for now, a dispute that had threatened to bring down the government.

The announcement came four days after Chancellor Angela Merkel and her more conservative Interior Minister Horst Seehofer reached a deal on how to handle asylum seekers arriving at Germany’s southern border with Austria who are already registered elsewhere in the EU. Under EU law, those people should be returned to the first EU country they entered, but that is not always possible in practice.

The agreement announced Thursday between the governing CDU, its more conservative sister party the CSU, led by Seehofer, and the Social Democrats (SPD) is a softened version of the deal reached on Monday.

While the asylum process for those arriving at the border will be accelerated, they will not be housed in so-called transit centers or camps as Seehofer and Merkel agreed. Instead, there will be “transit processes in police centers,” according to Seehofer.

No mention was made of the second part of Monday’s deal, which involves sending asylum seekers back across the border to Austria if a deal cannot be made with the first country of registration for the individual’s return. The Austrian government has not yet consented to that proposal.

For Andrea Nahles, the leader of the center-left SPD, the need to avoid unilateral pushbacks directly at the border was a high priority — and one that has been met.

“We could agree that there will be no national unilateral action, no rejections at the border,” Nahles said Thursday evening.

Leader of SPD Andrea Nahles delivers a statement as she arrives at the German parliament on July 5.

The deal signals a significant deescalation of tension after a fraught month in which the specter of a German government collapse loomed large.

After announcing his controversial “migration master plan,” Seehofer issued an ultimatum to Merkel, pledging to instruct border police to start rejecting some asylum seekers directly at the border if she could not reach a satisfactory deal on migration with other EU leaders.

Unhappy with the agreement reached at an EU summit last Friday morning, Seehofer signaled his intention to resign before then consenting to last-ditch talks with the chancellor, during which the two reached a compromise that pacified the interior minister and kept the coalition intact.

Although the number of asylum seekers arriving at the southern border has fallen sharply in the last two years, Bavarian border defense will remain a critical issue as the clock ticks down towards state elections in October. Seehofer’s CSU will likely face a strong challenge from the far-right, anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD).

Nadine Schmidt reported from Berlin and Judith Vonberg wrote in London. CNN’s Taylor Barnes also contributed to this report.

Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2018/07/06/europe/german-government-migration-deal-intl/index.html

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Germany Plans to Spend Billions More on Army While Trump Slams ‘Underspending’

Sputnik News — Wed, 04 Jul 2018 10:46:02 +0000

The federal budget draft suggests multibillion increase in defense spending for 2019. Over the recent time, the German military has been struggling to cope with shortages in armor and equipment as well as pressure from its NATO allies, who criticized the country for breaking promises on target budget.

The proposed 2019 German federal budget, which is to be presented by Social Democrats (SPD) Finance Minister Olaf Scholz, has reportedly set aside $51.2 billion aside for the military. As the German business newspaper “Handelsblatt” reported and the German Press Agency (DPA) confirmed, this is not only $4.7 billion more than Germany is slated to spend on its army in 2018, but it also exceeds previously proposed increase for 2019 by $785 million.

Despite the row over stricter migration and border controls between Chancellor Angela Merkel and Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, which impacted the ruling German coalition between the CDU and CSU parties, Scholz wants to hold a special government session on the 2019 budget before the summer break. The German Parliament is to revise and pass the draft before autumn.

According to the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, as the latest tax estimate predicts much higher government revenues than expected, Scholz promised more money to the army, succumbing to pressure from German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen, a member of Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union.

This issue of defense spending has been one of the major sources of disagreement between the SPD and Merkel’s CDU/CSU, who form the grand coalition government in Germany. The previous, less generous military budget proposal was strongly opposed by von der Leyen. She criticized it for being inadequate and pointed out the insufficient financing earmarked for the country’s military forces, the Bundesweher.

Aging Tanks, Jet Fighters Not Ready to Fly

While Germany is slated to take command of NATO’s crisis response force in 2019, its military is facing major shortages of basic military supplies. The list of shortfalls also includes fighter aircraft struggling to operate at night, pilot attrition within the Luftwaffe and just four out of 128 Eurofighter Typhoons ready to fly combat missions. The problems aren’t limited to the German Air Force.

“Less than half of the 224 Leopard 2 tanks are ready to roll and a mere five of the Navy’s 13 frigates are seaworthy,” according to the German Defense Ministry’s “Report on the Operational Readiness of the Bundeswehr’s Primary Weapon Systems 2017.”

Grudge Over ‘Continued German Underspending’

Additionally, Berlin has been under pressure from US President Donald Trump, as well as some other NATO members for spending far less than the 2 percent of GDP requirement, NATO members agreed to in 2014.

The New York Times reported on July 2 that US President Donald Trump has sent letters to the leaders of some NATO states, including Belgium, Canada, Germany and Norway, to express Washington’s discontent over the countries’ non-compliance with their obligations to increase defense spending. Germany got a special black mark from Trump, according to the media.

“As we discussed during your visit in April, there is growing frustration in the United States that some allies have not stepped up as promised…Continued German underspending on defense undermines the security of the alliance and provides validation for other allies that also do not plan to meet their military spending commitments, because others see you as a role model,” Trump wrote in his letter to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, in particular.

Germany has kept defense spending at just 1.2 percent of GDP in recent years. Von der Leyen announced the country would increase the defense budget to 1.5 percent of GDP by 2025, still half a percent below the target share.

Source: https://sputniknews.com/military/201807031065994180-germany-military-budget-nato/

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