"One Day": The Margins of Germany in the Center
The German election results indicate a significant shift: the fringe parties, the far-right AfD and the far-left Die Linke, are achieving gains and symbolizing a new-old German politics. Chancellor Friedrich Merz warns of rising antisemitism and an unsafe situation for Jews. The podcast hosts Dr. Ofer Waldman to analyze the changes.
The German election results have brought a message: the fringes of German politics are no longer on the margins. The victories of the far-right AfD party and the far-left Die Linke party symbolize a new politics, a new Germany, or perhaps a new-old Germany. A day after the results were published, Chancellor Friedrich Merz held a press conference in Berlin and addressed the issue that troubles him most: antisemitism. According to him, antisemitism has not only become acceptable but is now encouraged by some, and Jewish life in Germany has become unsafe. Politically, the moderate parties are trying to kill two birds with one stone: Die Linke, accused of antisemitism and anti-Zionism, and the AfD, at whose victory celebrations a supporter was documented making a gesture resembling a Nazi salute. The podcast hosts Dr. Ofer Waldman, head of the Israeli office of the Heinrich Böll Foundation, which is affiliated with the German Green Party, to analyze the changes Germany is undergoing.