{"id":23713,"date":"2025-05-06T12:29:47","date_gmt":"2025-05-06T12:29:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/live-updates-friedrich-merz-stumbles-in-bid-to-become-germanys-next-leader\/"},"modified":"2025-05-06T12:29:47","modified_gmt":"2025-05-06T12:29:47","slug":"live-updates-friedrich-merz-stumbles-in-bid-to-become-germanys-next-leader","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/live-updates-friedrich-merz-stumbles-in-bid-to-become-germanys-next-leader\/","title":{"rendered":"Live Updates: Friedrich Merz Stumbles in Bid to Become Germany\u2019s Next Leader"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- ItShrt World News -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1882483372\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<p>Two decades ago, before Friedrich Merz came back from the private sector to win the German chancellorship, he accepted an invitation to a gathering of the French Foreign Legion in Corsica. At the last moment, the organizers asked him to arrive on the parade ground not by road or rail, but by parachute.<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">Mr. Merz, then a corporate lawyer, had never jumped out of a plane. But a fellow attendee recalled recently that Mr. Merz did not hesitate. He made the jump \u2014 successfully, but with a bit of a rough landing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">Now 69 and a politician, Mr. Merz is attempting a much more precarious leap with a similar risk of stumbling. He was expected to become Germany\u2019s next chancellor on Tuesday, after his party won the February national election. But in a sign of the challenges he faces, Mr. Merz fell six votes short in a first vote in Parliament.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">He now faces a second round of voting and is expected to eventually prevail. <\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">Mr. Merz, who has no executive experience in government, would be taking office at the most challenging time for the nation since the reunification of East and West Germany 35 years ago.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">He and his coalition government, led by his center-right Christian Democrats, will land in a series of national crises, including a <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2025\/02\/21\/world\/europe\/germany-economy-election.html\" title=\"\">stagnant economy<\/a> and a frayed relationship with the United States.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">An ascendant nationalist party, the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany, or AfD, which German domestic intelligence just <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/05\/02\/world\/europe\/germany-afd-far-right-extremist.html\" title=\"\">classified as extremist<\/a>, has surpassed Mr. Merz and his mainstream political counterparts in some polls.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">In the months since his party won elections in February, Mr. Merz has been aggressive about addressing those challenges.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">He has criticized President Trump and questioned the stability of American democracy, and he has huddled with foreign counterparts in an effort to lead a newly muscular Europe. He quickly broke a key campaign promise on fiscal restraint, cutting a deal with center-left rivals to relax Germany\u2019s hallowed limits on government borrowing in order to spend \u201cwhatever it takes\u201d on national defense.<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"img-sz-large css-hxpw2c e1g7ppur0\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\"><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-caption\" class=\"css-1g9ic6e ewdxa0s0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">Mr. Merz on Monday in Berlin with members of the new cabinet and party officials after signing a coalition deal to form the country\u2019s new government.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span class=\"css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0\">Credit&#8230;<\/span><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Odd Andersen\/Agence France-Presse \u2014 Getty Images<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">And despite <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/01\/27\/world\/europe\/germany-afd-merz-cdu-migration.html\" title=\"\">joining the AfD<\/a> in an effort to pass new immigration restrictions shortly before the election, he has vowed to shun them in Parliament once more. He has also reversed a pledge to turn away asylum seekers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">Mr. Merz\u2019s supporters say the moves are the hallmark of an agile politician with the potential to deliver on the big issues worrying the German public: growth, defense, immigration.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">\u201cI think he\u2019s extremely well prepared and very deep and thoughtful,\u201d said John P. Schmitz, a deputy White House counsel under George H.W. Bush. Mr. Schmitz helped hire Mr. Merz to work in the German offices of the Chicago law firm Mayer Brown and jumped out of the plane in Corsica with Mr. Merz around 2005.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">But others think that Mr. Merz struggles to plan more than one step ahead, leading him to break promises. That, they say, has cut into his popularity.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">His about-faces on spending and migration have alienated many of his base conservative voters. Mr. Merz and his party have sagged in the polls since the election, and the AfD has drawn even with them in some surveys. He is starting with one of the lowest approval ratings of any German leader in the modern era.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">\u201cThere\u2019s this old saying: \u2018Whatever you do, act wisely and consider the end,\u2019\u201d said Ruprecht Polenz, a former secretary general of Mr. Merz\u2019s party. \u201cThis thinking,\u201d he added, \u201cI feel is not his main strength.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">Mr. Schmitz dismisses such criticism, saying that Mr. Merz\u2019s ability to be flexible is a sign of his leadership.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">In the capital, Mr. Merz is known for his charm and ability to warm to new ideas. Friends sometimes complain that he is too heavily influenced by the last person to speak with him before he makes a big decision \u2014 but that, once he makes that decision, he hates to be challenged on it. That has sometimes caused critics to accuse him of stubbornness.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">In 2020, the 6-foot-6-inch Mr. Merz gave <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.spiegel.de\/politik\/deutschland\/friedrich-merz-ich-schaue-rein-physisch-auf-viele-menschen-von-oben-a-00000000-0002-0001-0000-000169705035\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">an interview<\/a> in which he was asked about the perception he was arrogant. \u201cMy height alone is, of course, a potential target for such prejudices,\u201d he said. \u201cPhysically speaking, I look down on many people, so it\u2019s only a small step to \u2018looking down on them.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">A former corporate lawyer with significant wealth, Mr. Merz has promised a more conservative course in both the country and the party he inherited from Angela Merkel, who left the chancellery three and a half years ago.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">That partly reflects his background in the Sauerland region of the wealthy west of Germany, a region that defines his politics and persona. During his campaign, Mr. Merz ran on the slogan \u201cMore Sauerland for Germany,\u201d evoking the region\u2019s image as a heartland of the country.<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"img-sz-large css-hxpw2c e1g7ppur0\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\"><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-caption\" class=\"css-1g9ic6e ewdxa0s0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">A campaign sign for Mr. Merz in his hometown, Brilon, in the west of Germany. He comes to town every several weeks.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span class=\"css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0\">Credit&#8230;<\/span><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Ina Fassbender\/Agence France-Presse \u2014 Getty Images<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">Every two years he attends a ritual dating from Medieval times in the picturesque town of Brilon, where he was born and raised, in which local men walk along the town\u2019s borders before gathering for a party in the fields.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">\u201cThis is what distinguishes him: He has always remained closely connected to his homeland and knows where he comes from,\u201d said Niklas Frigger, the deputy mayor of Brilon, who is from Mr. Merz\u2019s party.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">Mr. Merz also comes to the town every several weeks, usually on a Sunday, to drink coffee with his parents, who, at 97 and 101, recently moved into a senior home, residents say. His wife, Charlotte Merz, is the chief judge of a local court in the Sauerland town of Arnsberg, where they live, and they have three grown children.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">The new chancellor, who has talked about being wild as a youth before turning things around and going to university, started his political career in 1989 in the then-fledgling European Parliament. He soon moved to Berlin, where he quickly climbed the ranks of the Christian Democrats, noticed for his leadership and speaking qualities.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">In the early 2000s, after losing a power struggle to Ms. Merkel, Mr. Merz turned away from politics and started a career in corporate law, advising clients who wanted to establish their businesses in Germany. Mr. Merz served on multiple boards, including that of the American investment firm BlackRock, before returning to politics after Ms. Merkel announced her retirement.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">During his election campaign, Mr. Merz tried tapping into a yearning for a time when Germany\u2019s economy was booming, infrastructure was new and bureaucracy worked.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">But challenges mounted for him, taking up much of his attention.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">Despite finishing first in the February election, Mr. Merz\u2019s options were limited because the party had performed poorly. He had only one plausible coalition partner, the Social Democrats, who had led the extremely unpopular previous government and registered a record low for their party in February.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">To secure their votes for military spending and more, Mr. Merz handed an unusually large number of cabinet positions to his junior partner. He softened his plans on immigration, including his promise to reject asylum seekers at the border.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">Mr. Merz has expressed hopes of forging a positive relationship with Mr. Trump, but allies say he has become increasingly disenchanted by a series of actions by the U.S. administration. Those included vows to pull back American troops in Europe and a speech by Vice President JD Vance in Munich in which he attacked Europeans on \u201cfree speech\u201d and warned them to stop sidelining parties like the AfD.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">Mr. Merz was also stunned by the dressing-down that Mr. Trump and Mr. Vance gave Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president and a fellow ally, in the Oval Office. \u201cIn my opinion, this was not a spontaneous reaction to Zelensky\u2019s statements, but rather an intentional escalation of tensions during the meeting in the Oval Office,\u201d Mr. Merz said at the time.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">Mr. Merz has increasingly pushed back against the Trump administration, warning Germans they must take responsibility for their own security. \u201cDo you seriously believe that an American government will agree to continue NATO as before?\u201d he asked lawmakers in March.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">Even many of those who have criticized Mr. Merz\u2019s leadership style have approved of his stance toward the United States.<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-h61jh5 evys1bk0\">\u201cI believe that he truly understands how the global situation has changed and what is changing in the U.S.,\u201d said Mr. Polenz, the former secretary general of Mr. Merz\u2019s party. \u201cHe is a staunch supporter of trans-Atlantic relations and will certainly try to maintain and stabilize all relations between Germany, Europe and the U.S. as best he can. But he is under no illusions about the difficulty of the task ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"live-blog-post-content css-1smqmx3 etfikam0\">Tatiana Firsova<!-- --> contributed reporting from Berlin.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- ItShrt World News -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1882483372\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/live\/2025\/05\/06\/world\/merz-germany-chancellor-parliament\/merz-germany-chancellor-parliament-vote\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Two decades ago, before Friedrich Merz came back from the private sector to win the German chancellorship, he accepted an<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23714,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[1337,861,1344,763,1343,469],"class_list":["post-23713","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world","tag-christian-democratic-union-germany","tag-elections","tag-friedrich","tag-germany","tag-merz","tag-politics-and-government"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Live Updates: Friedrich Merz Stumbles in Bid to Become Germany\u2019s Next Leader - World News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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