Merkel Tanks In German Polls As Critical Discussions Take Place With SPD

Angela’s Merkel’s ability to restore her power in Germany should be decided in the next few days, as talks take place with Martin Schultz’s SPD.

In the meantime, Merkel’s ratings have unexpectedly “tanked” in the latest German polls. More than half of Germans believe she should not run for office in a poll conducted for t-online.com, as the Daily Express reports.

Angela Merkel’s worries continue as the latest polls reveal the majority of Germans did not want her to run as a candidate for Chancellor again. The survey, carried out in the coalition talks breakdown, makes worrying reading for Angela Merkel. While Mrs Merkel said yesterday she wanted to stand again in any new snap election the German people appear to be turned off by the prospect.

Of those polled, 54 per cent said she should not run for office, according to the polling institute Civey for t-online.de. Only 38.5 percent of Germans would welcome a renewed candidacy of the chancellor. A breakdown of those views saw Mrs Merkel pick up 76.2 per cent support amongst the supporters of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Christian Social Union (CSU) which stood at 76.2 per cent.

 

Amongst supporters of the Greens, Mrs Merkel also seemed to gain a sizeable backing with 52.2 per cent wanting the current leader to stand again. Among the FDP supporters that was only about 30 per cent. Perhaps unsurprisingly supporters of the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) do not want her to stand again with 88.5 per cent calling on her to step back.

There was little comfort for the German leader in another poll published yesterday in Der Spiegel.

The latest SPON poll indicated that support for the coalition between Mrs Merkel’s CDU and the CSU fell below 30 per cent to 29.2 per cent. This is believed to be their lowest ever level. The polling institute Civey, based in Berlin, indicated the fall is part of a downward trend for the two parties.

There was no joy though either for the main opposition party the Social Democrats (SPD) which also suffered a decline in popularity. Leader Martin Schulz saw the support for his party drop to 19.5 per cent, its lowest level since December 2016. A similar fate was suffered by the AfD which had been making progress in popularity recently. The latest poll shows the party has fallen by 1.5 per cent points since negotiations over forming a new coalition had failed. It is now at to 13.6 per cent.

The FDP, which ruled out a forming a “Jamaican coalition” with Merkel and the Greens, rose 1.7% to 13.3% and the Greens rose 1.5% to 11.9%. The co-founder of the Greens, Hans-Christian Strobele said recently.

"The end of the chancellorship of Angela Merkel has already been announced by the outcome of the general election. "Now Merkel"s political end can indeed come very quickly. In my opinion, Mrs Merkel will not be able to stay at the top of the government for much longer."

After the “Jamaican Coalition” talks broke down, Merkel indicated her preference for a new election, rather than ruling with a minority. However, we suspected it was a bluff to scare other parties back to the negotiating table. On this note there are signs of progress. Merkel’s former “Grand Coalition” partner, the SPD, has been under pressure support Merkel to secure Germany’s stability. According to Bloomberg.

Germany’s biggest opposition party is ready to begin talks with Angela Merkel on a minority government, offering her a way to restore political leadership in Europe’s biggest economy.

It’s the first sign the Social Democratic Party is ready to help the chancellor stay in office after her talks on forming a coalition with three other parties fell apart. SPD head Martin Schulz, who faces party pressure to go further and disavow his refusal to join a Merkel government, is meeting Germany’s president on Thursday for consultations on the way forward.

SPD officials are making positive noises about shoring up Merkel and German stability, which could include ditching Schulz. Bloomberg continues.

“Of course we want to help Germany and we haven’t ruled out anything,” SPD lawmaker Karl Lauterbach said in a ZDF television interview. That includes the option of a “grand coalition” with Merkel’s Christian Democrat-led bloc as a last resort, he said. Schulz, who led the SPD to its worst result since World War II in September, faces increasing pressure within the party to step aside, a move that might help clear the way for a grand coalition.

He is ready to hold talks with Merkel and is prepared to back her in a minority government, though he won’t offer another grand coalition, according to a person familiar with his thinking who asked not to be identified. Schulz will inform President Frank-Walter Steinmeier of his plan at their one-on-one meeting in Berlin, the person said.

Germany’s political establishment is in turmoil but, in its quest for stability, we can’t rule out a rapid resurgence in Merkel"s at the head of a reformed Grand Coalition, if Schulz is sacrificed. In the meantime, Merkel is almost making Theresa May’s position look stable.
 

German Minister Compares Left-Wing Extremists To "Despicable Islamic Terrorists"

The violent riots that engulfed the city of Hamburg during the G20 summit have prompted some deep soul-searching among ordinary Germans while provoking a wave of indignation among German politicians, who demanded a radical change of approach toward violent protests, as well as to left-wing extremism. Speaking to Bild, Germany"s Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said “Germany’s image in the international community has been severely damaged due to the incidents in Hamburg" following three nights of violent clashes between the left-wing radicals and police in the German northern port city that hosted the G20 summit.

"All alleged political motives for this orgy of violence are full of deceit and should just serve as a disguise for the real motive of the offenders that [came] from all parts of Europe: violence in itself,” Gabriel blasted, perhaps not knowing that NYC Mayor de Blasio flew to Hamburg with the explicit "noble" intention of encouraging said group of protesters.

The minister also demanded the creation of an EU-wide special investigative committee that would launch an inquiry against all those involved in the violent riots in Hamburg. “A state governed by the rule of law must now demonstrate an ability to defend itself."

Echoing Gabriel, Germany"s Justice Minister Heiko Maas also spoke about the necessity of an EU-wide response to outbreaks of left-wing extremism. He particularly demanded the establishment of the European information databank on extremists as well as more intensive exchange of data on extremists committing violent crimes. “We have faced a new form of violence, to which we should respond with enhanced cooperation in fighting extremists,” Maas told the German media on Monday in Berlin. He also vowed to employ a tougher approach toward violent extremists’ supporters. “Those, who support rampant violence will also have to stand trial,” he said, as cited by the Der Tagesspiegel daily.

Maas told German broadcaster NDR he backed creation of a "database of left-wing extremists", but said it could take a long time to set up. In the meantime, countries should at least exchange data about those convicted of violent acts, he said.

Also on Monday, German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere compared the left-wing rioters in Hamburg to neo-nazis and islamic terrorists. "The brutality with which extremely violent anarchists have proceeded in Hamburg since Thursday is unfathomable and scandalous," de Maiziere told reporters. “Those were not demonstrators. Those were violent and felonious radicals,” the minister said during a press conference on Monday, adding that those who staged violent riots in Hamburg were “despicable, violent extremists just like neo-Nazis and Islamist terrorists.” He added that people who had thrown paving slabs from rooftops had essentially been "preparing attempted murder".

He also echoed Gabriel"s words, saying that they have no right to use any political motives to justify their actions and expressed his hope that the German courts would pass “tough sentences” upon them. He went on to say that summits similar to the G20 would continue to be hosted in major German cities, despite any threats of violence from various extremists. “Any other approach would be a capitulation of the law-bound state,” the minister added.

Martin Schulz, the Social Democrat (SPD) challenger to Chancellor Angela Merkel in Germany"s national election in September, said the militants had acted like terrorists. He said the "marauding gangs" could not claim to have any political legitimacy for their actions, adding: "It had the characteristics of terrorism."

"Such small-minded skirmishes are the business of people who took a whole city hostage for their dim-wittedness in an almost terrorist manner," said Schulz, whose party is trailing Merkel"s conservatives in the opinion polls.

* * *

There were also mutual accusations among Germany"s political parties, as many politicians focused specifically on the flaws of the existing approach towards left-wing extremism and violence in Germany by saying that this problem has long been neglected by the authorities.

The head of the Free Democratic Party (FDP), Christian Lindner, did not go quite as far as Maas" suggestion of a database of left-wing extremists, but demanded that extremists’ activities be “much more closely monitored” by the German domestic security service, the BfV, which is usually tasked with dealing with terrorist activities or far-right extremists.  A member of the presidium of the German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party, Jens Spahn, told Bild on Sunday that “the extent of left-wing extremism in Germany has been downplayed for years.”

If those were neo-Nazis who reduced Hamburg to “wreckage and ashes,” the public indignation would be rightfully big, he said, adding that “the left-wing fascists with their hatred and violence need just the same clear response.”

The politician also went further, accusing the Social Democrats, Greens and Left parties of deliberately downplaying the left-wing violence and “closing their eyes” to it. His words were echoed by CDU Secretary General Peter Tauber, who told Bild that “nobody would come to the idea of just tolerating far-right extremist centers” while, “in case of the left-wing extremist centers such as Rigaer Strasse in Berlin or the Rote Flora in Hamburg, people are often too reserved.”

“That must change,” Tauber added.

His words were echoed by Stephan Mayer, an MP from the CDU’s ally, the Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU) party, who said that the city authorities in Berlin and Hamburg “should no longer tolerate squatting by left-wing extremists and lawless zones in Rigaer Strasse and the Rote Flora.” Both places were squatted by left-wing groups after being abandoned years ago. Similar ideas were expressed by the head of the Federal Chancellor’s Office, Peter Altmaier, who said that the closure of the left-wing extremists’ centers would be a “test” for Germany.

“We should not tolerate any lawless zones,” he said, adding that the left-wing extremists consistently spread the idea that “damage to property is not that bad.” He went on to say that tolerating such ideas is a “grave mistake.”

In his Twitter post, Altmaier also compared what he called “repulsive extreme terror” in Hamburg to terror from right-wing extremists and Islamists. He also thanked Hamburg police for its efforts aimed at containing the rioters.

Linksextremer Terror in Hamburg war widerwärtig und so schlimm wie Terror von Rechtsextremen und Islamisten. Danke Polizei. Danke Hamburg.

— Peter Altmaier (@peteraltmaier) July 8, 2017

* * *

Police said almost 500 officers were injured during the protests, with 186 people arrested and 225 taken into custody.

As Reuters reports, some commentators have criticized Merkel"s choice of Hamburg, a seaport with a strong radical leftist tradition, to host the meeting, saying her desire to demonstrate her commitment to freedom of speech had backfired.

To be sure, the chancellor also condemned the violence in her speech at the summit.

“I sharply condemn the rampant violence and unrestrained brutality the police was facing over and over again during the G20 summit,” she said at that time, adding that “there is not the slightest justification for looting, arson and brutal attacks.”

Merkel promised compensation to those who had property damaged. De Maiziere said he expected judicial authorities to pass tough sentences on the militants and added that breaching the peace could result in prison sentences lasting several years.

Germans Concerned After 270,000 Syrian Refugees Granted Permission To Bring Family Members

With worries about mass migration having largely faded from Germany"s consciousness after a record surge in 2015, and an angry popular reaction, prompted Angela Merkel to curb the inflow of refugees, there is renewed concern in Germany following a report that up to 270,000 Syrians in Germany have the right to bring in their family members, a "revelation" that could refuel the debate about migration less than six months before a national election. Germany"s Bild cited a government paper showing that a total of 431,376 Syrians applied for asylum in Germany in 2015 and 2016 and said that of those 267,500 are allowed to bring their families to Germany.

As Reuters observes, Germany blessing such a material migration could play into the hands of the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which has lost support in recent months as the refugee issue has receded from the headlines ahead of a Sept. 24 election.  Sure enough, senior AfD member Alexander Gauland condemned the figures, saying it was "absolute madness" to allow so many people to bring their families to Germany: "Billions and billions of tax money are being swallowed and the social state is being steered toward breakdown while our eyes are wide open."

In 2016 Germany suspended family re-unifications for two years for migrants who get "subsidiary protection" - granted to people who are not considered as being persecuted individually but in whose home country there is war, torture or other inhumane treatment.

According to Reuters, Syrians are the biggest group of asylum applicants in Germany. They are increasingly being granted subsidiary protection rather than refugee status and that means they are only granted the right of residence for a year, although this can be extended. But Chancellor Angela Merkel"s Christian Democrats (CDU), their Bavarian sister party - the Christian Social Union (CSU) - and the Social Democrats (SPD), their junior coalition partner, decided last week to make exceptions for people with subsidiary protection status in hardship cases.

More than a million migrants flocked to Germany in 2015 and 2016 but arrivals have dropped significantly.

The AfD, which has made immigration one of its key rallying points, is currently on between 7 and 11 percent in opinion polls, above the 5 percent threshold to enter parliament. CSU leader Horst Seehofer told German magazine Stern tackling the AfD was a main aim.

"If we govern the country sensibly and don"t attack each other personally in the election campaign, we can push the AfD under 5 percent," Seehofer said. However, while his party is behind Merkel in the election campaign he said it was sticking to its demand for a cap on the number of migrants coming here - a proposal which the chancellor has rejected.

In 2016, some 280,000 migrants arrived in Germany, a sharp drop compared with 890,000 the previous year. Bild said while there were no numbers for 2017 yet, the federal police had already caught more than 20,000 illegal migrants on the borders in the first three months of this year.