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Is Merkel on the way out?

PostPosted: Mon Oct 29, 2018 10:09 am
by Heid the Ba
Apparently standing down as party chair but staying as Chancellor. Hopefully she'll stay long enough to kick May in the lady parts before going.

Re: Is Merkel on the way out?

PostPosted: Mon Oct 29, 2018 10:28 am
by Arneb
She intends to stay on as Chancellor - it is unclear how long, as she always maintained the party presidency and the chancellorship should be in one hand (not doing this was, in her opnion, the principal mistake her predecessor, Gerhard Schröder, made in 2005). By that logic, it is likely she is preparing to leave for the half-time mark of the current legislature. I don't know if she wants to suffer the indignity of being a lame duck for three years. OTOH, she is on track for the 16 year chancellorship record of Helmut Kohl's, and she would just love to trump him on that one. One thing, however, is completely clear: She won't seek antother term in 2021.

So, enough time to kick people where it hurts. But her reign is definitely winding down. And I have to give it to her, she is doing it on her own terms. That at least is definitley a first in the history of our Republic.

Re: Is Merkel on the way out?

PostPosted: Tue Oct 30, 2018 5:30 am
by tubeswell
So is the office of Chancellor like a Presidency or something?

Re: Is Merkel on the way out?

PostPosted: Tue Oct 30, 2018 9:04 am
by Arneb
No, sorry for being unclear. I should have written "Party chairmanship" instead of "Presidency".
The Chancellor is not like a President, but like a Prime Minister. Our President does have some actual political powers, but only very limited ones. The Chancellor is the head of government and, as the Constitution says, "sets the guidelines of policy"-

Merkel's step is a break with her personal persuasion that a Chancellor should always chair the party that nominated him or her. She said yesterday that departing from that position is a risk, but one worth taking in the context of the fact that she won't seek another term as chancellor - as an opportinity for her successor to make a name for him/herself and succeed her as chancellor after the next election, for which he/she would be the prime candidate.

Re: Is Merkel on the way out?

PostPosted: Tue Oct 30, 2018 10:22 am
by Heid the Ba
It does make sense from a succession planning point of view, and as she is definitely going I think it is a good idea.