At the 93rd CSU party conference last weekend, Markus Söder and Friedrich Merz called for the fight against the left and called for faster reforms. While the Union is mobilizing against the socialization of living space and the federal government wants to massively make such projects more difficult with a draft law, its demarcation from the AfD remains contradictory. – A comment from Thomas Mercy.

From October 23rd to 24th, 2026, the Christian Social Union (CSU) held its 93rd party conference under the motto “Closer to people - for a citizen-oriented and down-to-earth Bavaria”. The sister party of the CDU, which only exists in Bavaria, discussed the future of the party there.

On the first of the two days, CSU leader and Prime Minister Markus Söder gave a speech. As a prelude to his speech, the big screens showed, among other things:videosthe recent demonstrations from France and Italy, news clippings about the AfD victory and images from a pro-Palestinian demonstration on October 7th in Germany, which is described as a “hate demo”. Then a voice says: “In turbulent times like these, it is good when there is a place of security and stability – and that is Bavaria.”

The protests by young people around the world in particular currently seem to be causing a lot of fear and concern among the CSU and CDU. The Baden-Württemberg Interior Minister Manuel Hagel (CDU), for example, already wants the youth protests in Germany planned for October 31st with the motto “Gen Z regulates”.forbid, as these relate positively to the protests in France.

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“The blue wave is rolling, the red front is coming.”

When Söder began his speech after the video, he reiterated the message he had previously conveyed: “The blue wave is rolling, the red front is coming.” With these words he made it clear right at the beginning what task he assigned to the CSU: the fight against political extremes from the left and right. The CSU is like thatSöder, unwilling to “give Germany over to the radicals.”

In doing so, Söder ignores the fact that these supposedly equally radical forces are by no means the same. The Left and the AfD represent fundamentally different political content and goals. He also fails to mention that his own party repeatedly seeks proximity to one of these two political camps.

In theZDF interviewSöder explained, referring to the AfD, that the word “firewall” had “burned down”. He rejects a ban procedure and instead relies on “argumentative hand-to-hand combat”. He demanded that Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla exclude right-wing extremists from their party. However, he concluded a collaboration between the Union and the AfDout of. At the same time, he called on the Union to do so again“Number one”to become.

“Where is the firewall to the left?”

He also made explicit comments about the Left Party in his speech. He warned of a left-led government in Berlin and described the Berlin Left Party as “an evil left”. He then asked: “Where is the firewall to the left?” And implicitly demands this. He justifies his dissatisfaction with the Left Party with its position on Palestine and the “scandals” surrounding MP FeratKocakand in particular the Left Party's plans to socialize apartments in Berlin. As with the Germany Day of the Junge Union (JU), the youth organization of the CDU and CSU, he threatened to turn off the money - this time with the slogan“No money for extremists.”

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However, Söder not only knows how to express his hostility against the left, but also used the opportunity to praise the tightening of migration policy in the federal government and in Bavaria and even more deportationsdemand.

Race for socialization: The federal government wants to reach the finish line before Berlin

After Söder had already railed against Berlin's socialization plans at the party conference, Federal Interior Minister Alexander now also wants to do soDobrindt(CSU) make such projects much more difficult. A planned “Investment Protection Act” should only allow incorporations if absolutely necessary. A state government would also have to prove that it has exhausted all other means, and the compensation would have to be in money and at market value. A“arbitrary left-wing socialization fetish”Dobrindt told “Bild” that it was not compatible with the Basic Law. The federal government apparently wants to present its law before a new government is established in Berlin.

The federal government wants to quickly pass a law against housing expropriations

LoudExploratory paperThe Left, the Greens and the SPD want to transfer around 160,000 apartments from five companies, around four fifths of which belong to Vonovia, to a public institution in return for compensation capped at 16 billion euros. That’s an average of around 100,000 euros per apartment. Rents should not fall as a result, but rather remain at their current level.

For Die Linke, the inclusion of the demand in the paper is a success, although some of the apartments were sold with the participation of Die Linke: GSWwentIn 2004 under a red-red Senate for 405 million euros plus around 1.56 billion euros of assumed debts, mathematically around 30,000 euros per apartment. A buyback would therefore cost the country around three times as much. TheFinancing conceptshould be in place in 2027 and a law will come to the House of Representatives in mid-2028. Because the paper ties implementation to minimizing legal risks, the SPD could get out without officially breaking with the paper.

Merz promises faster reforms and calls for unity

When CDU leader and Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz gave his speech as a guest on the second day, expectations were high, especially with regard to the question of whether he would comment on the proposal to make the Bavarian State Parliament President Ilse Aigner (CSU) the new Federal President. After Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier leaves office in March after two terms in office, the Federal Assembly will decide on his successor on January 30, 2027. Markus Söder already expressed his support in his speech.

MerzAlthough he welcomed Aigner by name at the beginning of his speech, he did not explicitly comment on the proposal to make Aigner the new Federal President. In his speech, Merz called for unity in the Union and warned the SPD and the Greens against a coalition with the Left in Berlin. He accused The Left of inciting hatred against Jews, the police and Israel's right to exist.

However, Merz took a clear stance on the reforms that had begun: “We don’t need these reforms at some point, we need these reforms now,”emphasizedhe in his speech. He also expects rapid implementation from the SPD.

He did not mention any specific reform plans. But his remarks made it clear how he measures the success of the reforms in the area of ​​social security: the interests of the economy, not those of the people in the country. "We have to get our economy back on track for growth. We need companies to invest. We need a competitive industry. And I never tire of repeating: 'Germany must remain an industrial country.'"

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