After a torrid 100 days, Germany’s Friedrich Merz is mocked as a ‘dead man walking’. He must fight back | John Kampfner

With the AfD surging, it could soon be the largest party here. But, if he acts now, that dark scenario need not come to passJohn Kampfner is the author of In Search of Berlin and Why the Germans Do It BetterThe passing of the 100-day milestone for any world leader usually denotes the end of their honeymoon period. Friedrich Merz has not been able to enjoy even a single day of grace, beginning with the very moment he was supposed to be elected Germany’s chancellor but wasn’t. On 6 May, as Angela Merkel watched from the visitors’ balcony, the Bundestag voted and declined to approve its new leader. For a few hours, chaos ensued, until the second round of voting saw his chancellorship approved, so the swearing in could proceed.It was a symbolic act of defiance, and because it was a secret ballot, it wasn’t clear how many of the 18 dissenters came from Merz’s Christian Democrats (CDU) or from their new coalition partners, the Social Democrats (SPD). But it cast a shadow over the new administration from its inception: this is the government that nobody wanted – not least its protagonists.John Kampfner is the author of In Search of Berlin and Why the Germans Do It Better Continue reading...

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Miranda Devine: Trump turns tables on Democrats after years of lawfare — now it’s time to hold them accountable

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