Friedrich Merz had big plans for his first day as chancellor. The new government wanted to get to work immediately and make important decisions. To bring about change quickly. And to take responsibility - that is what the coalition agreement says. But it didn't work out. The first day of the new German chancellor will go down in history: Friedrich Merz failed in the first round of voting in the Bundestag - something that had never happened before.
From now on, the word "no confidence" will hang over Merz's government. And that is not good. For months, Germany was almost without a government. The country was absent from the international scene. And at the same time, war was raging in Europe, and an unpredictable president was in power in the United States. Right now, Europe should be strong, but Germany is returning to the stage in a state of instability.
The times are too serious for such lessons
A chancellor who has not had a majority from the start is extremely weakened. The damage has already been done. It is hard to imagine that it can be undone quickly. Merz will need a long time to rebuild trust. But what will happen when tough decisions have to be made in the future? Then everyone in the government will remember what happened on May 6.
Friedrich Merz will have to ask himself why not all the coalition members got behind him. In recent years and months, he has alienated many of them. The anger is understandable. But perhaps those who did not vote for him should say this to Merz personally, rather than holding an entire country hostage. Because the times are too serious to teach such lessons.
Of course, MPs can vote "no". But to harm your own candidate and not say a word is the nature of cowards. And that is a very dangerous game. Putin will be pleased, but so will the extremists in Germany. In the Bundestag, the parliamentary group of the "Alternative for Germany" (AfD), which was categorized as right-wing extremist by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution a few days ago, is larger than ever. This party wants chaos, it wants to see others fail in order to take advantage of it. And it is clear that at this point the AfD will be the only alternative if the Christian Democrats and the Social Democrats continue to fail to gather a majority. Right-wing extremists in power - who could want such a thing?
The shock in Germany is great
But at the same time, it is pointless to talk about a national crisis at the moment. Anyone who does so is helping those who want chaos. Yes, you can say "no" in a vote. The Basic Law provides clear rules for this. Germany is still a stable democracy. But the shock is enormous and everyone must now realize how big the stakes are.
The new government has received a serious wound. It can be healed. But please start healing it immediately.
Author: Gábor Halász (ARD)