Perhaps today we will witness a political miracle. If Friedrich Merz and his CDU general secretary Franziska Hoppermann appear before the press in the Konrad-Adenauer-Haus today as planned at 1:30 p.m. and announce the results of the two-day presidential retreat of the Christian Democrats, it could be that a murmur goes through the hall, through the party and through the entire country: He has understood! Friedrich Merz has learned from the CDU's defeats in the last elections. He knows what to do now.
But then the alarm clock rings and Friedrich Merz wakes up. And his reality looks like this: From Baden-Württemberg he has to hear from Cem Özdemir that “the hourglass” is now running for him (more on that here). Horst Seehofer reports from Bavaria and tells him that his rhetoric "completely misses reality" and that he should follow Angela Merkel's example (more on that here). And as if humiliating advice from Swabia and Old Bavaria weren't enough, so-called party friends spoke out even before the presidium meeting began in Berlin and called for a "new start" for the CDU: the party should be closer to the people again, campaign for an affordable life, for justice and acceptance, Christian and social (more on that here).
Speaking of more justice: As of today, the Federal Constitutional Court is hearing two cases about inheritance tax. First of all, about an application from the Bavarian state government, which would like to establish - I'm simplifying this a lot - that the federal government is not responsible for structuring the inheritance tax, but that the federal states can set their own allowances. The suspicion is that the ruling CSU is primarily interested in scoring points with the heirs of expensive real estate.
Starting tomorrow, the constitutional complaint of a private citizen who should pay a lot of taxes on what he inherited from an aunt will be heard. He doesn't see that when, at the same time, heirs to companies worth millions or even billions are largely spared from taxes. The complainant believes that this violates the principle of equal treatment (more on this here).
It is likely that the Constitutional Court will ultimately order the legislature to change the inheritance tax. However, the problem of justice has been known for a long time and no one would have to wait for a verdict. The SPD parliamentary group has long since presented a concept, and the employee wing of the CDU has also shown itself ready for reform. But the Union is not moving - probably due to pressure from a lobby that operates under the name "Family Business Foundation", which represents the interests of some of the country's largest companies. And so it happens that the Constitutional Court now has to push the CDU towards more social justice.
More background here: How fair is the inheritance tax? Let's ask Karlsruhe!
While the exploratory talks between the Left, the Greens and the SPD are gaining momentum in Berlin despite numerous warnings and reminders from practically everyone except those directly involved (more on that here ), it is illuminating to take a closer look at a city that is already governed as left-wing as election winner Elif Eralp plans to do with Berlin: In New York City, the "democratic socialist" Zohran Mamdani has been at the controls of power for nine months. And as my colleague Frank Hornig observes, less conservative real estate sharks are angry about his policies - Mamdani gets along great with Donald Trump. People who were his followers until recently are more likely to be disappointed.
As in Berlin, there are loud pro-Palestinian activists in New York, and they resent Mamdani for, for example, taking part in a memorial event for the Jewish victims of Hamas terror on October 7th. At the same time, however, Mamdani is condemned by Jewish organizations for speaking of an "ongoing genocide by the Israeli government in Gaza." So is he doing everything wrong? Or everything right?
In Mamdani, says Frank, we can study how a left-wing hopeful governs, implements his promises, which compromises his supporters forgive him and which they don't.
Full story here: Mamdani called Trump a fascist. Now he's talking to him about housing
...is Claudia Wittig, the deputy parliamentary group leader of the BSW in the state parliament of Saxony-Anhalt. Wittig thought that people with different views could also “drink a glass of wine together” and that is why she and her parliamentary group colleagues accepted an invitation from a right-wing extremist magazine to have a dinner with AfD MPs. Now, after party founder Sahra Wagenknecht whistled her back, Wittig speaks of a “mistake.” But the photos of the happy party were already out in the world.
The whole story here: Wagenknecht condemns a joint dinner between the AfD and BSW in Saxony-Anhalt
