Because of Sauerland-Trump: Friedrich Merz can become an anti-trump

Friedrich Merz doesn’t make it easy to like him. Especially those to the left of the middle, but also many in his own party, the CDU. Sometimes the designated Chancellor was outraged in the past about “Little Pashas”, at another time he indicated a possible cooperation with the AfD in municipalities.

The asylum vote with the support of the AfD in the German Bundestag brought him the accusation of helping right-wing extremists. Mass demonstrations followed. Shortly before the election evening, the 69-year-old also called: “On the left is over!”

SPD general secretary Matthias Miersch then called the CDU boss a “mini-trump”. The comparison with the US President has been resonating Friedrich Merz for a long time. The conservative “FAZ” already titled him as a “Sauerland Trump” in 2020, the “Spiegel” once joked in alluding to Trump’s name on X about “Realfriedrichmerz”.

The comparison has been repeated with relish since then when the CDU boss says something too old-fashioned, economic liberal or, yes, sometimes wrong. Sure: Merz is impulsive, it is easy to drive from moods. The CDU man loves the regulars’ table and his maker gesture can soon promote disappointments in liberal democracy. But Merz, a little Trump? Like a corrupt oligarch on the way to buy democracy and to do your own pockets on the side?

The label could hardly be wrong. Of all people, Friedrich Merz, this conservative age school, shows these days that he has what it takes to become a real democratic opponent for the authoritarian US president. Merz, the anti-Trump, would be the more suitable name.

The Trump label once placed on the forehead not only trivializes the real madness that comes from the USA and is always more colorful flowers in this country. It also prevents a clear view of another, possibly more important side by Friedrich Merz: its deep anchorage in the parliamentary system of the Federal Republic. And with it the chance that – of all things – lies in the chancellery of the often so unloved.

Let’s look at what has happened in the past few weeks: Merz reacted as one of the first important European politicians to the scandal between Trump and Selenskyj in the White House at the weekend. He has been warning of the plans of the US President for weeks, and interference in the election campaign from Washington with as great hardness as from Moscow.

The transatlantic Merz of all people criticizes the overthrow of the Trump administration with clarity and realism that many others still miss. At the same time, he is now in no time to throw the old Union dogma of the black zero over the pile. Billion investments could suddenly follow. For what? For European strength, against Trump.

As is well known, you shouldn’t praise the day before the evening. How stable Merz is and how successful he will be in his approach to make Europe a geopolitical factor will only be seen in governance. Words alone are not yet leadership.

But there is little to suggest that everything could be just a facade that will soon peel off. During his campaign appearances, Merz often talked about the legacy of Konrad Adenauer and Helmut Kohl, in principle about the market economy, parliamentary democracy, the rule of law and the western bond in Germany. There were rarely applause for these history hours, people would have preferred to have heard him about the economic policy of the traffic lights and against the Greens. Some listeners wrinkled their noses about them. But they were probably important to him.

So who does this eternal Trump comparison help? He helps the political opponents of Merz to gain my own land (otherwise the mini-trump comes) and he helps to take over the pollution in the self-deployment (choosing us anyway).

In consequence, the label acts like another version of Steve Bannon Slogans “Flooding The Zone With Shit”. In addition to Trump, everything blurs into a bad -smelling porridge.

There are just enough topics that could be seriously arguing about. About Friedrich Merz ‘barely affordable economic program, the union’s obvious misjudgment with regard to the state finances, the big words about the alleged solution to the asylum question, how migrants, despite everything, feel as part of this country, the defense of the country or about the popular pension question.

All huge tasks. But a German Trump is not in sight. Happiness.