German politicians reacted with shock on Friday after opposition leader Friedrich Merz opened the door to cooperation with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) on migration reform after an Afghan man was held in connection with a deadly knife attack. German mainstream parties have previously gone to great lengths to avoid passing legislation while relying on votes from the far-right party, a stance known as the "firewall." However, Merz said in Berlin that his conservative parliamentary g
  • ahornsirup@feddit.orgEnglish
    3·
    6 days ago

    He won’t, at least not this year. There are still too many people in the CDU who’d be up in arms against a coalition or any other form of formal cooperation with the AfD, and many of the CDU’s voters are in the same boat. Not necessarily a majority in either case, but a big enough minority to kill any hopes of stable government or of winning an election with the party and electorate split.

    Merz knows that. He’s an asshole, not stupid.

    • RedstoneValley@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
      1·
      6 hours ago

      Are you still sure he’s not an asshole AND stupid at the same time? He tried the same trick twice and failed miserably. Now he’s being mocked by the afd and this dumb and reckless maneuver has probably cost his party quite a lot of votes (and most of those unfortunately will go to the afd).

    • RedstoneValley@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
      2·
      5 days ago

      I sure hope you’re assessment of the CDU is right, but honestly I wouldn’t bet on it. If you look at how quickly things in the US go down the drain, implementing fascism and destroying basic human rights at a speed that would have been unthinkable just a few months ago, I’d be very, very sceptical about the CDUs promises regarding their so-called “Brandmauer” (Firewall) against the extreme right.