Union would show responsibility for the country by voluntarily joining the opposition

After the election defeat, the CDU and CSU are anything but a good figure. The political opponents may rub their hands, but the state of the Union is not trivial. It has to cause concern when the party, which has largely determined the fate of the country since the World War and remains a strong political force in spite of everything, has to do with itself in this way. Not least because they are still striving for a coalition under their leadership. Is a divided, largely haphazard, and internally punished party really capable of governing? Self-knowledge would be the first step towards improvement. Really show responsibility for the country if the Union were to give up the chancellery. Five reasons to join the opposition.

A worn out party

It is in the genes of the Union to maneuver itself through demonstrative unity and loyalty to its own leadership into a state as it is currently demonstrating. It wasn’t much different at the end of the Kohl era. A worthy successor was not built up through or alongside the overarching figure of the Chancellor of Unity, the party was divided and shaken by scandals. Time and again, the Union shows a tendency to cling to a successful figure of power until it is depleted programmatically, structurally and personally. This could be concealed by another candidacy of Angela Merkel four years ago, but in the past four years it has not been possible to make up for what had been neglected. At the latest during the election campaign, the Chancellor herself appeared burned out, and sometimes disinterested. But as it is, the claim to power degenerates into an end in itself. High time to reposition yourself. The fact that this can also succeed in government, as Union politicians are now happy to emphasize, has already largely refuted Merkel’s last term of office. It is time for the CDU and CSU to let go of power.

Laschet was burned long ago

Armin Laschet has long been burned to death after the grueling internal power struggle for the party chairmanship, the open conflict over the candidacy for chancellor with Markus Söder, the largely meaningless and botched election campaign (keyword: grin in the flood zone) and the hefty election defeat. The fact that he has still not clearly and publicly congratulated the election winner Olaf Scholz (SPD) demonstrates bad style – which CSU boss Söder indirectly rubbed under his nose in public. Laschet has long been under fire from his own party, from the CSU anyway. Even if the man from Aachen-Burtscheid were to succeed in forging a Jamaica coalition, his political future would by no means appear secure. Even Friedrich Merz, who has already been defeated several times, is already getting into position for another candidacy for the party chairmanship. That such a wounded figure like Laschet is still striving to lead the government is downright irresponsible. In any case, designing is not possible – especially since the 60-year-old does not represent anything specifically recognizable in terms of content. His well-presented future team is history again.

Not a reliable coalition partner

Laschet’s weakness is the Union’s weakness. Thought games that a Jamaica coalition could be formed and then led by Markus Söder as Federal Chancellor reveal how much the CDU and CSU cling to power. And they show again how preoccupied the Union is with itself. According to polls, Söder may have been the better candidate for chancellor, but he was not a candidate. Such a step would be a clear disregard for the will of the voters, to which at least those who make such mind games public apparently hardly feel bound. Anyway, there is no way potential coalition partners would participate. But the mind games alone show that the Union would not be a reliable coalition partner. The country cannot afford a government alliance that could break up at any time, if only because of the pressing challenges posed by the climate crisis.

Unresolved dispute over the direction

Saxony-Anhalt’s Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff put it in a nutshell: “The choice was made in the East”. In Saxony and Thuringia, the AfD became the strongest force in the federal elections – a massive shot across the Union’s bow. The candidacy of the former constitution protection chief and right wing winger Hans-Georg Maaßen for the CDU in Thuringia was a burden in the election campaign; especially since Armin Laschet was unable to position himself clearly on it. Tendencies in the CDU regional associations in the east towards rapprochement with the AfD have already cost Laschet’s predecessor Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer party chairmanship and candidacy for chancellor. In the election campaign, Laschet ruled out any cooperation or even rapprochement with the AfD, but the arch-conservative “Values ​​Union” continued to tease and Friedrich Merz flirted again and again with his closeness to the people in the East – and, see above, with the party chairmanship. How far to the right does the Union want to drift? This dispute about direction must also be resolved before the party can be ready to assume government responsibility again.

Bad record

After 16 years of union with Chancellor Angela Merkel at the helm, the country is by no means in a good position. Many bridges and roads are ailing, many schools are in a deplorable condition (and still not equipped to meet Corona standards), the flood disaster on the Ahr shows once again that we are not prepared for climate change, in terms of digitization Germany is lagging behind in a global comparison , there is a lack of care, a doctor in the country, unaffordable rents in the city, an excessive and also outdated bureaucracy, every fifth child lives in one of the richest countries in the world in poverty and the armed forces are on the verge of operational readiness. All of this shows that the Union has recently been unable to tackle the problems. In addition: toll debacle, mask scandal, Azerbaijan lobby affair, illegal evacuation of the anti-coal protest camp in the Hambach Forest. It is not a new finding: those who have been in power too long tend to abuse it. Especially if that has no consequences (for a long time) in elections. Not least because of this: high time for humility, high time for renewal, high time for the opposition.