populism
How much should Donald Trump cost Friedrich Merz?
Exaggerations, defamation and fake news: The US election campaign, especially Donald Trump’s rhetoric, was brutal. The severity is also increasing in this country – but there are still limits.
Eat? A popular topic for politicians too. When the European Union approved several species of insects as food in 2023 and Green Party representatives welcomed this, Markus Söder went into attack mode: He preferred roast pork to house crickets or grain mold beetles, said the CSU boss. He complained that the Greens were calling for more and more regulations on eating, which he considered to be “completely excessive.” That was a huge exaggeration, but what does that matter if you want to build up your political opponent as an enemy?
The television duel between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump was also about food, although even tougher: The Republican presidential candidate claimed that Haitian refugees were stealing and eating pets in a Texas border town. That was demonstrably false. But what does it matter when it comes to fueling anti-migrant sentiment?
A political horror show
Can you really compare Markus Söder and Donald Trump? Of course not. The CSU boss is an unrestrained sharpshooter, the US presidential candidate is a notorious liar. Personal defamation is part of Trump’s daily business; the US election campaign was at times a political horror show. And yet the mixture of exaggerations, half-truths, alternative facts and targeted disinformation is also finding its way into political discourse in Germany. Are we threatened with American conditions in the future?
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
