CDU | Criticism of Merz is growing stronger in the CDU

The criticism of Chancellor Friedrich Merz continues. Photo: Michael Kappeler/dpa The criticism of Friedrich Merz from within his own party is steadily increasing. Clara von Nathusius, federal treasurer of the Junge Union (JU), believes that no further electoral successes for the CDU are possible with the incumbent chancellor. “There are no more elections to be won with this Chancellor,” she said on Sunday evening in the ARD program “Report from Berlin.” When asked, she made it clear what that meant: Merz should “not compete again.”

This means that the debate about the political future of the CDU chairman goes well beyond calls for a course correction. Von Nathusius combines her criticism of Merz with a fundamental reckoning with the Union's current course. The party has a “massive credibility problem.” Although it cannot be attributed solely to Merz, he bears part of the responsibility.

“There are no more elections to be won with this Federal Chancellor.”

At the same time, the JU politician opposed a central principle of the CDU in dealing with the AfD: In her view, the so-called firewall was a “failed project”. In recent years, the Union has concentrated too much on defining who or what it stands against, instead of making it clear what it stands for.

This is particularly explosive for the governing party because the criticism comes just a week before the state elections in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and the House of Representatives election in Berlin. In Saxony-Anhalt, the CDU had lost almost 20 percentage points with 17.2 percent on September 6th. The AfD got 43.8 percent.

CSU boss Markus Söder is meanwhile trying to limit speculation about the chancellor's downfall in a way that can be perceived as ambiguous. “Definitely not from the CSU,” the Bavarian Prime Minister told “Bild” when asked whether his party would seek to overthrow the chancellor. However, Söder emphasized that he could not speak for the CDU: “I am not responsible for the CDU, I am not the chairman. But I can say that for the CSU.«

When asked whether Merz was still the right Chancellor, Söder also answered yes. However, his justification was brief: Merz stood for the reforms. End. Söder believes that a change of chancellor would make little sense because it would not make the federal government's problems disappear. Whoever takes over the office will still have to deal with the same difficulties and an SPD that, in Söder's view, is having difficulty reforming.

The CSU boss is therefore focusing less on personnel changes and more on accelerating government work. After the election debacle, Berlin must “take a significant step forward.” The results so far are too meager. Reforms must be implemented more quickly, errors must be avoided and the government's communication must be improved.

»I am not responsible for the CDU, I am not the chairman. But I can say that for the CSU.«

Before the start of a closed meeting of the CSU board, Söder also expressly warned of the failure of the black-red coalition. After the traffic lights end, it would be a “disaster” if the next federal government also failed after a short time. According to Söder, this would be a political advantage for the AfD. The Union and the SPD must therefore “pull themselves together” and ensure that the government becomes visibly capable of acting.

However, Söder combined this demand with renewed criticism of the Union's previous strategy towards the AfD. The firewall concept failed because it meant too much talk about who the Union was against rather than about its own content. Söder expressly does not call for cooperation with the AfD. Rather, the Union must provide the party with content.

How far the considerations of a palace revolt in the Chancellor's entourage actually extend is also the subject of speculation. Citing several sources close to Merz, Die Zeit reported that a minority government under his leadership was at least being considered as a scenario. Accordingly, a break with the SPD, for example after the dismissal of Labor Minister Bärbel Bas, could result in a minority government. In order to implement individual reforms, the Union would then have to look for changing majorities in the Bundestag - theoretically also with votes from the AfD.

However, the federal government rejects this scenario. A government spokesman described speculation about a minority government under Merz as “completely out of thin air.” The Chancellor wants to continue to implement the agreed reforms in the coalition and expects discipline and stability from everyone involved.

Merz himself had already ruled out a minority government in May. At that time he had declared that it was not an option for him and that he would neither accept nor trigger it. At the same time he warned against new elections.

The current rumors are therefore primarily an indicator of nervousness within the Union. There has so far been no concrete break in the coalition, nor any open attempt to replace Merz as Chancellor. At the same time, scenarios that seemed politically unimaginable just a few months ago are now being discussed publicly.

In addition to the critics, there are also appeasers. The deputy leader of the Union parliamentary group, Mathias Middelberg, explicitly supported Merz. “Yes, I still believe in Friedrich Merz,” he said on Deutschlandfunk. The personnel debate is not the crucial question, but rather the speed with which the federal government implements the reforms so that their results are visible to the population.

Education Minister Karin Prien (CDU) argues similarly. She sees one reason for the Union's poor poll numbers in the fact that many people had the impression that the Chancellor and the party did not have enough empathy for their concerns. That has to change. However, she does not believe a change of chancellor is the solution. This would not make the coalition's problems disappear.

CDU General Secretary Franziska Hoppermann also defends the current course. The falling poll numbers give rise to questions, but the Union is “on the right track”. As an example, she points to the planned pension reform.

At the same time, calls for consequences from Saxony-Anhalt are becoming louder. The chairman of the CDU workers' wing, Dennis Radtke, described the course of a "pure CDU" advocated by Merz as a failure and called for a change of course. In a letter to Merz, Saxon CDU district chairmen called for a ruthless analysis of the election results and early consultation on the consequences.

»This CSU gene is needed in the current phase. CSU-Gen means turning to the people, talking to each other and not just explaining and, above all, not lecturing, but understanding what people want and to align your own politics with that to a certain extent.

The Saxon Prime Minister and deputy CDU chairman Michael Kretschmer described the result as a “debacle” and “disaster”. Things cannot simply continue as before. At the same time, Kretschmer also avoids openly calling for the Chancellor to resign. Instead, he demands that the Union must approach people more closely and align its policies more closely with their specific problems. At the CSU meeting he even campaigned for a “CSU gene” in the Union. This could be understood as potential support for Söder, who is seen by some as a potential replacement for Merz alongside the Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hendrik Wüst.

The warning from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is even clearer. There the CDU is only at seven percent in surveys. The top candidate Daniel Peters has already stated that he will not appear together with Merz in the election campaign. The deputy CDU parliamentary group leader Marc Reinhardt spoke of the fear of failing at the five percent hurdle.

A departure of the CDU from a state parliament would be a historic event for the Union. Accordingly, the party's focus is on next Sunday. Another bad result could turn the ever-heating Chancellor debate into a concrete personnel issue.

Parallel to the personnel debate, the dispute within the black-red coalition is intensifying. In order to find its way out of the party's crisis, the CDU is trying to push through the reforms as quickly as possible and without further compromises. Attacks on the coalition partner probably act as the CDU's own lightning rod for internal frustration and the search for those responsible for its own misery. CDU MP Christian von Stetten, chairman of the influential middle class parliamentary group, described Federal Labor Minister Bas as “no longer acceptable”. He accuses her of blocking necessary social reforms.

The attack caused outrage in the SPD. In view of the difficult political situation, Klingbeil called for more cohesion in the government. SPD General Secretary Tim Klüssendorf spoke of a diversionary tactic in view of the Union's internal debates. The parliamentary managing director of the Union faction, Hendrik Hoppenstedt, criticized public attacks on the coalition partner.

When it comes to policy, there is no sign of unity. The planned pension reform is being questioned, particularly within the SPD. Saarland Prime Minister Anke Rehlinger is calling for a re-examination of the planned abolition of the pension without deductions after 45 years of contributions. Federal Education Minister Prien, on the other hand, warns against fundamentally renegotiating the compromise negotiated between the Union and the SPD.

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania's Prime Minister Manuela Schwesig is also calling for the states to be more involved in the planned social reforms. She supports reforms in principle, but criticizes the fact that so far they have mainly consisted of cuts.

The lines of conflict currently run on several levels: there is a dispute within the CDU about course and leadership, and between the Union and the SPD about the pace and specific design of the reforms. The foreseeable conflicts will become more severe in the future, which in turn will only lead to more instability.

The election results next Sunday are likely to be decisive for the future well-being of the government. If the CDU in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania actually fails at the five percent threshold, the pressure on Merz will increase significantly. However, it remains to be seen whether this pressure will lead to an explosion in the medium or long term. With agencies.

The »nd.Genossenschaft« belongs to its readers and authors. They are the ones who make our journalism accessible to everyone through their contribution: We are not backed by a media company, not a large advertising customer or even a billionaire.

Thanks to the support of our community we can:

→ report independently and critically → shine a light on topics that otherwise remain in the shadows → give space to voices that are often silenced → counter disinformation with facts → strengthen and deepen left-wing perspectives

With “Voluntarily pay” you contribute to the financing of our newspaper in solidarity. So that nd remains.