Boris Johnson vs. Trump
Daily Mail published the following article by Boris Johnson on February 21:
“They know full well that saying Ukraine ‘started the war’ is like blaming the defenceless young woman at the beginning of the movie Jaws and claiming that she takes off her clothes and skips into the moonlit sea with the specific intention of attacking the great white shark. It’s like saying that American ships brutally fired on Japanese Zeroes at Pearl Harbor. It’s Orwellian, bonkers, an inversion of the truth, and they know it. It’s victim-blaming rubbish to say that Ukraine was in any way responsible for the three years of carnage, and it is also rubbish to say that Vladimir Putin was ‘provoked’ by Nato…
“Putin launched his war not because he was worried about Nato – that’s pure Kremlin propaganda – but because he is a ruthless opportunist, who had been in power for two decades, and who thought he could revive his political fortunes with a short, sharp war to rebuild the Russian empire. He thought that the Ukrainians would rapidly surrender, and that the West would spinelessly acquiesce, as we had during the annexation of Crimea in 2014.
“… everybody can see that Volodymyr Zelensky is not a dictator but a democrat courageously defending his country against an aggressor… we need to remember whose side the Ukrainians are on. They are on our side. They are on the side of freedom… In this war there is not a shred of moral equivalence between Ukraine and Russia…’
Trump needs to be careful that he is not losing the support of his closest allies.
Words of War Intensify
The Daily Mail wrote on February 21:
“Trump has claimed Sir Keir Starmer [and Emmanuel Macron] ‘didn’t do anything’ to end the Ukraine war. The US President lashed out at Sir Keir and … Emmanuel Macron amid a transatlantic spat over Mr Trump branding Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky a ‘dictator’. Those comments riled both the PM and French President, who hit back at Mr Trump’s attack on the Ukrainian President and doubled down on their support for Kyiv… This comes after Mr Trump said in an interview with Fox News he didn’t think it was ‘very important’ for Zelensky to be involved in peace talks as ‘he’s been there for three years’ and that he ‘makes it very hard to make deals’… he suggested the Russian President ‘doesn’t have to make a deal’ because he could complete a total invasion of Ukraine ‘if he wanted’…
“In his radio interview, Mr Trump also appeared to move away from his previous astonishing remarks in which he falsely blamed Kyiv for having ‘started’ the conflict. ‘Russia attacked, but there was no reason for them to attack.’ Mr Trump said… Billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk, an ally of Mr Trump, yesterday joined attacks on Mr Zelensky by claiming he runs a ‘fraud machine feeding off dead bodies of soldiers.’ [He also called him a “despised dictator.”]
“But Keith Kellogg, the US President’s envoy to Russia and Ukraine, struck a different tone today following a trip to Kyiv. In a post on Mr Musk’s social media site X, the retired lieutenant general said he had had a ‘long and intense day with the senior leadership of Ukraine’. This included ‘extensive and positive discussions’ with Mr Zelensky, who he praised as ‘the embattled and courageous leader of a nation at war.”’
What is really going on behind the scenes?
Very Personal
The Sun in the UK wrote on February 21:
“As negotiations have continued over finding a peace deal in Ukraine, the relationship between the two have only worsened. Their personal spats have spilled over into the public eye in recent weeks.
“Zelensky has even been urged to flee Ukraine ‘immediately’ amid escalating tensions between Washington and Kyiv, insiders in the White House warned…
“Asked about the growing tensions between the US and Kyiv, another source close to the White House said the public spat was a long-time coming… Trump’s smearing of the Ukraine regime as scam artists who provoked a war using US taxpayers’ money is a rant beneath the dignity of his office. Almost nothing in it is true…
“It is an unprecedentedly shocking statement from the President of the United States… It is troubling and short-sighted in the extreme for the so-called leader of the free world to have no interest in a war raging in Europe because he is separated from it by the Atlantic. America is not a business… is the most powerful democracy on Earth with global responsibilities and — let’s be frank — a duty to discern right from wrong with absolute moral clarity.”
Even the pro-Trump media and pro-Trump commentators are standing up to Trump.
Mark Levin Defies Trump
Mediaite wrote on February 20:
“Fox News’ Mark Levin delivered an implicit rebuke of President Donald Trump’s rhetoric about the ongoing war between Russian and Ukraine on Wednesday, debunking a series of false and misleading claims made by the president. On his radio show, Levin delivered a history lesson on Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s rise to power and various crimes, while going to bat for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky…
“‘Now look, I don’t have a problem if it’s the position of our administration to cut back on support for Ukraine — which I oppose, by the way — then so be it. Elections have consequences, so be it. But I want to make sure the facts are on the table and you, the American people, draw your own conclusion,’ began Levin, submitting that ‘MAGA doesn’t support Putin.’ ‘Zelensky ordered martial law — that’s what the constitution there compelled. Zelensky hasn’t called for an election — that’s what the constitution there compels. he continued. ‘Now, I’m waiting for the first free election for Vladimir Putin. I mean, this is almost comical in a sick way that Putin is demanding an election. Why is he demanding an election in Ukraine when he doesn’t have free and real elections in his own country? And why does he-, why does he get to call the shots when in fact, he murders people who dare to challenge him?’…
“‘Zelensky’s latest poll, he’s at 57%,’ noted the conservative commentator just one day after Trump claimed that Zelensky’s approval rating sat at 4%. ‘The parliament — with all parties in the parliament — support what he’s doing. They’re trying to survive. Ukraine did not invade Russia. Russia invaded Ukraine… Eighty-one percent of the American people do not trust Putin because 81% of the American people are smart,’ continued Levin…
“Trump’s comments have been criticized a wide range of voices, including many on the right. But Levin’s remarks are particularly notable given his long history of supporting the president…”
The New York Post Draws the Line
Mediaite wrote on February 21:
“The New York Post pushed back on President Donald Trump’s quip that Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky is a ‘dictator’ with a full front cover image of Russian President Vladimir Putin and an all-caps headline declaring: “THIS IS A DICTATOR.”… The Post… a conservative powerhouse and Trump-ally Rupert Murdoch’s flagship newspaper, has drawn a sharp line in the sand over Ukraine… The cover was praised by other Trump-supporting media personalities who have taken issue with the Ukraine pivot, like journalist Piers Morgan…
“The move follows a week of criticism from The Post’s editorial board itself, taking direct aim on Trump comments beginning Wednesday… ‘Whatever negotiating tactics Trump cares to use, turning the truth completely upside down ought to be beneath him.’”
No Minerals Deal… USA Blames Zelensky
The Sun wrote on February 22:
“Zelensky is reportedly not ready to accept the ‘problematic’ offer from the US. The [minerals] deal proposed by Trump’s team would see Kyiv hand over billions of dollars of minerals to Washington DC in exchange for weapons… And it comes as the split between the US and Ukraine is widening, with some White House officials raging Zelensky would be ‘six feet under’ without them…
“Kyiv officials are however standing firm, reports Sky News, with some sources saying US and Ukrainian officials had spent ‘all night’ negotiating on Thursday into the early hours of Friday. A source said: ‘The agreement is not yet ready to be signed, there are a number of problematic issues, and in the current form of the draft, the president is not ready to accept it. Today, the drafts do not reflect a partnership in the agreement and contain only unilateral commitments by Ukraine.’
“The White House view is that Zelensky grew too accustomed to unwavering support under former President Joe Biden, including billions in military aid and NATO backing. Now, Trump’s inner circle believes the Ukrainian leader has overstepped, reports Axios. ‘We created a monster with Zelensky,’ another administration official said. ‘And these Trump-deranged Europeans who won’t send troops are giving him terrible advice.’…
“‘In the course of a week, Zelensky rebuffed President Trump’s treasury secretary, his secretary of state and his vice president, all before moving on to personally insulting President Trump in the press,’ one official said. The US President also blasted Zelensky’s wartime leadership, calling him a ‘modestly successful comedian’ who must ‘move fast or he is not going to have a country left.’
“Russian President… Putin wasted no time seizing on the growing US-Ukraine rift, praising Trump for ‘changing his position’…”
Trying to appease Putin would be a colossal mistake.
No Guarantees for Ukraine
The Daily Mail added on February 22:
“Ukraine claims to have Europe’s largest reserves of titanium – used to produce alloys for aircraft and naval vessels, and lithium, a commodity that is becoming increasingly valuable amid global demand for batteries – particularly in electric vehicles. The war-torn country also has deposits of rare earth minerals that are essential in high-tech industries, including defense and clean energy. The minerals are especially valuable to the US amid growing tensions with China, which controls vast portions of the global supply.
“Zelensky furiously lashed out at the initial proposal, claiming that it was too vague and demanded a 50 percent share of Ukraine’s mineral deposits. He said that Trump was demanding $500 billion worth of the minerals – which was far beyond America’s total contribution to the Ukraine war effort of $100 billion. … Ukraine has trillions of dollars worth of natural resources… though many are found in the industrial heartlands in the east, currently occupied by Russia… Zelensky told reporters later Monday that any US-Ukraine economic treaty must see security guarantees… adding that his country was not just a ‘simple supplier of raw materials’…
“An analysis of the contract’s terms by the Telegraph concluded that, if the terms of the draft dated February 7, 2025 draft were accepted by Ukraine, Trump’s demands would amount to a higher share of Ukrainian GDP than reparations imposed on Germany following World War I…
“Reuters also reported that American negotiators said they may cut Kyiv’s access to Elon Musk’s Starlink, which has been heavily relied on for civilian and military use, if it did not agree to the mineral rights deal… ‘Ukraine runs on Starlink. They consider it their North Star,’ said the source. ‘Losing Starlink … would be a massive blow.’…”
Ukraine Agrees to Mineral Deal… Sort of…
The Financial Times wrote on February 25:
“Ukrainian officials say Kyiv is now ready to sign the agreement on jointly developing its mineral resources, including oil and gas, after the US dropped demands for a right to $500bn in potential revenue from exploiting the resources.
“Although the text lacks explicit security guarantees, the officials argued that they had negotiated far more favourable terms and depicted the deal as a way of broadening the relationship with the US to shore up Ukraine’s prospects after three years of war…
“The final version of the agreement, dated February 24 and seen by the FT, would establish a fund into which Ukraine would contribute 50 per cent of proceeds from the ‘future monetisation’ of state-owned mineral resources, including oil and gas, and associated logistics. The fund would invest in projects in Ukraine….
“However, the agreement omits any reference to US security guarantees which Kyiv had originally insisted on in return for agreeing to the deal. It also leaves crucial questions such as the size of the US stake in the fund and the terms of “joint ownership” deals to be hashed out in follow-up agreements.
“Ukrainian officials said the deal had been approved by the justice, economy and foreign ministers, and held out the prospect of Zelenskyy travelling to the White House… for a signing ceremony with Trump…”
We will wait and see what is coming out of that one…
USA Declines to Sponsor UN Resolution
Newsweek wrote on February 20:
“The United States is declining to co-sponsor a draft [UN] resolution… [which] reaffirms the need for full implementation of past U.N. resolutions, particularly the demand for Russia to immediately and unconditionally withdraw its military forces from Ukraine’s internationally recognized territory. Russia currently controls about 20 percent of Ukraine and continues to gain ground in the east.”
The USA submitted their own version, greatly exonerating Putin. It does not refer to Putin as an “aggressor,” and it does not demand Russia to withdraw from Ukrainian territory nor does it establish Ukraine’s independent sovereignty. This version will have no chance of acceptance. The irony is that we know from the Bible that ultimately, Russia and Ukraine will unite.
Trump’s Attacks on Ukraine So Wrong!
Die Welt wrote on February 23:
“On Monday it will be three years since Russia unleashed a war.
“Donald Trump’s attacks on Ukraine and its president are so wrong that from now on we have to reckon with everything. And they lead to historical comparisons that hurt.”
RFK Issues Two Bombshell Orders on Vaccines
Daily Mail wrote on February 21:
“Robert F Kennedy Jr has pulled promotional ads for vaccines and postponed a meeting of key vaccine advisors, in one of his first moves as health secretary.
“Kennedy ordered the CDC to scrub its digital ‘Wild to Mild’ flu vaccine campaign that juxtaposed a lion next to a kitten as an analogy for how the shot ‘tames’ the virus. But Kennedy wants the CDC to move away from nudge tactics and focus its vaccine communications on ‘informed consent’ – which involves telling the patient the medical risks and benefits and letting them come to their own decision.
“Meanwhile, the year’s first meeting of the CDC’s influential panel of vaccine experts has been delayed indefinitely, marking the first time the meeting has been postponed in over 40 years, except for during the emergency Covid pandemic… Mr Kennedy told HHS staff that ‘nothing is off limits’ when it comes to pinpointing the leading causes of chronic illnesses in children, including alterations to national vaccine recommendations.”
This is a good start. Hopefully, it will continue at full speed.
Another Trump “Plan” to Deal With Immigrants
Newsmax wrote on February 25:
“Illegal immigrants in the U.S., including children 14 and older, will be required to submit personal information, such as fingerprints and home addresses, to a registry under a plan being considered by the Trump administration… Previously, illegal immigrants were committing a civil offense and could be detained and deported but weren’t considered to have committed a crime…
“A law passed in 1940 created an immigrant registry to catch suspected communists, and the government aired TV ads reminding all immigrants, including permanent residents, to register annually at local post offices… By the 1960s, the government decided it was too costly and provided little benefit.
“Trump’s planned registry would require anyone in the country illegally who hasn’t interacted with the government, such as by applying for asylum or a work permit, to come forward. The administration plans to create a registration form and give them 30 days to complete it after the registry is established…
“President George W. Bush created a similar immigration registry after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, when his administration required men and boys from predominantly Muslim countries to submit photographs and fingerprints to the federal government… Tens of thousands of people who registered under that program were arrested and deported.”
These are frightening developments.
Brazil Censors Rumble
Deutsche Welle wrote on February 22:
“Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered video sharing platform Rumble to be taken offline in the Latin American country within 24 hours. In his decision, Moraes said Rumble has not complied with court orders, such as appointing a legal representative for Brazil…
“In response, Rumble said the platform is experiencing ‘unprecedented censorship in Brazil.’ The company, which has headquarters in both Canada and Florida, said Morae’s orders are ‘in response to our refusal to censor political dissidents residing in the United States.’… Rumble is responsible for the back-services for [Trump’s] Truth Social media site…. A venture capital company co-founded by current Vice President JD Vance invested in Rumble in 2021…
“The crackdown on Rumble in Brazil comes after Moraes ordered the suspension of Elon Musk’s x, also for failing to appoint a legal representative in the country. Although Musk was angered by the order, the company eventually complied with Moraes’ demands around a month later, with X being brought back online in Brazil… Moraes is a powerful figure in Brazilian politics.”
Trump Backpedals on Gaza
JTA wrote on February 21:
“President Donald Trump said Friday he would ‘recommend’ — but was ‘not forcing’ — his plan to depopulate the Gaza Strip and have the United States take it over, as Arab states have roundly rejected the idea and tensions mount over the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage release deal… ‘I think that’s the plan that really works,’ Trump said. ‘But I’m not forcing it. I’m just going to sit back and recommend it’…
“Trump has predicted that Arab states would come around to the idea of depopulating Gaza, but they have not…”
Our Politics Is a Disgrace
Bild Online wrote on February 21:
“The Palestinians of Hamas know no boundaries: the planned, annihilating terrorist slaughter of October 7, 2023. The display of corpses and hostages, the triumphal processions for child butchers in the Gaza Strip. Medieval gauntlet running for the kidnapped and abused. Dark bunker dungeons for more than a year. Then the ‘release’ by Hamas as the ultimate humiliation: the hostages were used as propaganda puppets. And on German streets, from the far left to the center, they are demonstrating FOR Hamas and the Palestinians. FOR terrorists. AGAINST Jews, AGAINST the State of Israel. And our state is still giving money there – directly and indirectly. We are still handing out double passes to the enemies of Israel and our way of life…
“Now the German-Israeli Bibas family has been wiped out. Two small children: murdered by Hamas while they were being held hostage ‘with their bare hands,’ as the Israeli army now says. Cold-blooded. Who can do that? Who has the heart to do that? They are the barbarians who killed babies in the womb on kibbitzes so that no Jews would grow back. And these barbarians hand over the wrong body – it’s not the mother… [But the dead mother, brutally murdered by Hamas, allegedly while in captivity, was subsequently handed over to Israel.]
“If their abduction did not lead to any recognizable action by our federal government, then what does their death lead to, and what follows from the disgusting game with Shiri’s remains? Audible: nothing. Once again nothing concrete…
“As Foreign Minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier was one of these political moral preachers. As our Federal President, he regularly and quite rightly speaks of… Israel’s right to exist. But what does all this mean? How far is he willing to go? Is there more than just Sunday speeches? When will the man… demand real consequences from the federal government?”
Not Like Germany, Please!
The New York Post wrote on February 21:
“The First Amendment is our sacred safeguard against becoming a censorious hellscape — like Germany, where insulting a politician can land you in prison. Even supposedly ‘free’ Western countries are liable to crack down on free speech at a moment’s notice… It should make us all grateful that expressive rights are enshrined in our Constitution. But it’s also a reminder of how vigilant we need to be to ensure we don’t succumb to the same censorious fate. As Germany demonstrates, banning ‘hate speech’ is a slippery slope to abandoning free speech altogether….
“… once you open the door to prosecuting ‘hate speech,’ you no longer actually have free speech. ‘Hate speech’ is an amorphous term that can be defined differently by every judge, every prosecutor, and every individual. The crackdown on ‘hate speech’ in Germany has been applied in some pretty laughable contexts…”
These concerns are justified. It starts with censoring and prohibiting free speech, burning books, and what is next?
Needed: A European Army
Vg-no wrote on February 25:
“We have no choice. The EU must become one united state. Should we have 27 different armies, and be feared by no one, or should we unite into a superpower that no one dares to threaten. That’s what Guillaume Ancel asks. He has fought as a French military officer in Rwanda, Cambodia and Bosnia for over 20 years. Now he wants to use his legitimacy as a military expert to promote a European federation , the United States of Europe, or USE.
“We knew we were threatened by Putin’s Russia, but now we discover we are threatened by Trump’s USA. And tomorrow it will be Xi Jinping’s China, he says… So the answer is simple, he believes: A federal structure, a democratically elected president, and a joint army. Under this force, France’s nuclear weapons would become Europe’s nuclear weapons, Ancel says… Ancel believes it will take courage for EU countries to give up their sovereignty , but that it is the only option.”
Germany’s Next Government
The Guardian wrote on February 23, 2025:
“… veteran political analyst Herfried Münkler… wrote in the newspaper Die Zeit… ‘The next government will have to take great pains to reassert German leadership in Europe.’… Merz (CDU) has said he aims to build a new governing alliance by Easter, setting up long weeks of tense negotiations in which Germany will be focused inward.
“His most likely partner will be Scholz’s Social Democrats…”
Report 24 speculated on February 23 that sooner or later, the CDU will collaborate with the AfD. In the past, the AfD claimed on occasion that Merz is more right-wing and conservative than even the AfD.
Trump Does Not Care For Germany
Bild Online wrote on February 22:
“US President Donald Trump has a new message for the Germans. And it goes something like this: I don’t care about you – nor about your new government… When he was asked in the White House on Friday afternoon to comment on the federal election, he shrugged off: ‘I wish you luck.’ Then he added with a grin: ‘We have our own problems here.’…
“No other US president in post-war history has ever made such a succinct statement about the Federal Republic or made it so obvious that Germany is a side note for them. This makes it clear: Germany cannot expect any leniency in the impending tariff war and must fear for the military protection of the USA.
“Trump doesn’t like Germany… He certainly didn’t like Angela Merkel… He said about the Chancellor: ‘She’s crazy. She is ruining Germany.’ What was meant was her asylum policy.”
Or Does He?
Deutsche Welle wrote on February 23:
“US President Donald Trump on Sunday said that a victory by conservatives was a good thing for Germany and the world. Writing on his Truth social platform, Trump said, ‘Much like the USA, the people of Germany got tired of the no common sense agenda, especially on energy and immigration, that has prevailed for so many years.’
‘‘This is a great day for Germany, and for the United States of America under the leadership of a gentleman named Donald J. Trump,’ he continued, adding, ‘Congratulations to all — many more victories to follow!!!’…”
However, Germany’s immediate future does not look rosy.
What Now?
Deutsche Welle wrote on February 23:
“Alice Weidel, leader of the AfD… said the AfD is prepared to enter a coalition government… But given that the CDU and other major parties have ruled out working with the AfD…, Weidel claims that the CDU have effectively adopted most of the AfD’s manifesto and says: ‘They’re going to have to explain to their voters how they’re going to implement those promises while working with left-wing parties. If they form a government with the SPD and Greens, then interim chancellor Merz won’t last four years.’…
“To form a government, a majority of at least 316 seats out of the 630 seats in the Bundestag is needed. A coalition between CDU and AfD would have been possible numerically, as both parties easily pass this threshold, adding up to 358. But according to conservative leader Friedrich Merz, this is out of the question. That leaves Olaf Scholz’s SPD as a possible partner, which together with CDU scrape by with 328 seats. A bigger majority could be formed if CDU were to add the Greens to the mix, reaching 416. But the CDU’s junior partner CSU has repeatedly ruled out governing with the Greens… Theoretically, the CDU could also lead a 3-party coalition that includes SPD and the Left party, but this is highly unlikely given very deep ideological differences between the conservatives and the far-left faction…”
“Friedrich Merz sharply criticized Donald Trump’s administration and urged Europe to distance from Washington during a post-election panel airing on state broadcaster ARD….”
The CDU won, followed by the AfD, the SPD, the Green party and the Left. The left-leaning BSW [under Sahra Wagenknecht; the BSW is different from the Left party and broke away from it] and the FDP did not make the 5% hurdle. Current Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) announced that he would be willing to negotiate about a leadership role within a new government. The SPD under Scholz suffered the most devastating defeat since World War II. The CDU did not do as well as they had hoped.
However one wants to look at it… this election hasn’t changed much and Germany’s current downfall may continue for a while. Bottom line: Another disaster! No wonder that according to Focus, many Germans complain that their lives won’t be better after the election.
AfD’s Big Success
Reuters wrote on February 23:
“The Alternative for Germany, which has morphed since it was founded in 2013 from a party of libertarian economists to an anti-immigration, pro-Russia group, [has] won the backing of one-in-five Germans… AfD leader Alice Weidel told supporters… that it would be tantamount to ‘electoral fraud’ if the first-placed conservatives chose to govern with left-wing parties rather than them. If that happened, she said, ‘next time we’ll come first.’ Weidel, the leader of a nativist party that preaches traditional family values while raising her children with a Swiss-based woman of Sri Lankan background, said the AfD was now ‘a mainstream party’…
“One leading figure is regional boss Bjoern Hoecke… [The AfD] became the largest party in Hoecke’s home state of Thuringia last year, and did sufficiently well elsewhere that only improbable and tricky coalitions of centre-right and far left could keep them out of office…
“The president of Germany’s Central Jewish Council, Josef Schuster, told Welt newspaper he was shocked at the strength of the AfD’s result…”
Even though the positions of the AfD change from time, they recently announced that they are for the reinstatement of a mandatory 2-year military service, and, according to the article above, “drastically restricting migration, disbanding the European Union and dropping support for Ukraine in its war with Russia.” They have also suggested, however, to replace the EU with a more limited group of like-minded core nations.
Austria’s FPÖ Congratulates
Report 24 wrote on February 23:
“FPÖ leader Herbert Kickl sent… a heartfelt congratulation [to Alice Weidel from the AfD]…
“’The patriotic turnaround is well underway and it cannot be stopped, but only delayed, because it is supported by honest love for the homeland, for one’s own people, for freedom and for the truth!'”
Merz Backtracks on Borders
Breitbart wrote on February 25:
“Hours after his party’s victory in Germany’s federal elections, likely incoming chancellor Friedrich Merz began to soften his stance on immigration as he looks to form a coalition with leftist parties rather than the anti-mass migration Alternative for Germany…
“While Merz campaigned as a supposed immigration hardliner, [he] appears to be following the tradition of notionally right-wing politicians abandoning their election-time promises once the votes have been counted.”
Merz— Corporate King in Conservative Clothing
UnHerd wrote on February 22, 2025:
“At the ripe age of 69, Friedrich Merz has waited decades for this moment… he is Germany’s chancellor-in-waiting… He’ll have to cobble together another coalition of disparate parties, but Merz won’t mind. Come Monday morning, he will have completed one of the most remarkable comebacks in recent political history… he is effectively running on a ‘Make Germany Great Again’ platform — a calculated attempt to win votes from the Alternative for Germany (AfD) by shifting his party to the Right on issues such as immigration. His cynicism here shouldn’t be underestimated: like Donald Trump in America, the millionaire Merz is a corporate king in conservative clothing.
“Merz… has long represented the interests of some of the world’s most powerful corporate and financial elites, most notably as a key representative of BlackRock in Germany between 2016 and 2020. Indeed,… Germany will become the first country to be ruled by a former BlackRock official. But his ties to elite institutions go back much further: for over two decades, even before joining BlackRock, he embodied the revolving door between politics, business and finance… Pharmaceuticals, entertainment, media and, of course, war — there is virtually no sector that BlackRock won’t try and profit from… Under Merz’s influence, for instance, BlackRock became one of the largest non-German shareholders in many of the country’s most important companies — from Deutsche Bank to Volkswagen, BMW to Siemens. Yet his work wasn’t just about increasing profits for shareholders; it was also about shaping a political environment where corporate interests were aligned with government policy…
“But then it’s hard to truly believe that ordinary Germans are Merz’s concern. Once a Davos Man, always a Davos Man — and his long history of representing powerful industries, including the chemical, financial and metallurgic sectors, suggests he will have other priorities. As chancellor, for instance, Merz could be called upon to regulate sectors with which he has long been associated…
“Recall, too, that under Merz’s leadership the CDU has received millions of euros in campaign donations from the very business interests he represented in the past… For both German and global corporate lobbyists, then, having Merz — a former colleague — as chancellor would be a dream come true. Or, as [finance expert Werner] Rügemer puts it: ‘This is putting the fox in charge of the henhouse.’
“Merz’s corporate connections shape his foreign policy as well. At heart, he’s… a firm believer in America’s role as the guarantor of the global order. This ideological stance has led Merz to align with the US on issues such as the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, calling for the project’s cancellation long before the escalation of the Ukraine crisis… Now, of course, Washington has a very different Ukraine policy. So will Merz be forced to abandon his Atlanticist beliefs? Not necessarily. Though his strong anti-Russian stance and militaristic tendencies seem at odds with Trump’s efforts to de-escalate the conflict, the reality is that their visions are more aligned than might initially seem to be the case.
“What, in the end, does Trump demand from Europe? Higher defence spending and a significant role in shouldering both the financial and strategic responsibilities for post-war security in Ukraine, something which could even involve the deployment of a European ‘peacekeeping’ force. These policies align neatly with Merz’s own vision. He has long advocated boosting Germany’s defence budget, a stance welcomed by his corporate allies in the German military-industrial complex. Now, in fact, he has joined the chorus calling for Europe to ‘take its security into its own hands’. Trump couldn’t ask for more. This strategic convergence, coupled with Merz’s conservative leanings, deep ties to the US financial and corporate sectors, and ingrained Atlanticism, all make him well-placed to become America’s European ‘vassal-in-chief’ in our post-liberal era. This would place Germany back at the helm of a European Union that is both economically weaker and militarily emboldened — even as it remains strategically adrift.
“This arrangement will be accompanied by much rhetoric about German and European ‘autonomy’ — and possibly even heated public disagreements between Berlin and Washington. In reality, though, it would largely be a façade, for the new dynamic would merely serve European and American elites. The former would continue to stoke the fear of Russia as a means to justify more defence spending, directing funds away from social programmes and legitimising their continued crackdown on democracy. As for the latter, they would continue benefiting from Europe’s economic dependence on the US…
“Not that we should be surprised. Over the past two decades, Merz, just like Trump, has proved himself a businessman first and a politician second. Yet unlike Trump, who at least has some populist credentials, Merz’s victory will be celebrated in the boardrooms of BlackRock and other major corporations, which can expect to see their bank balances start ticking steadily upwards. As so often, though, ordinary voters should not expect this bounty to flow their way.”
We are citing below the following article about Merz, which was published in 2018, but which is as relevant today as it was then.
Friedrich Merz and BlackRock
On November 29, 2018, Deutsche Welle wrote about Friedrich Merz who tried to replace Angela Merkel as Chancellor before, but his attempt failed:
“The sheer scale of BlackRock’s finances makes its influence on the world unlike that of any other company. Now one of its board members in Germany, Friedrich Merz, wants to succeed Chancellor Angela Merkel… If successful, he would be the first German leader to come directly out of the so-called shadow banking system, and the first leader to have previously been a highly paid lobbyist for a global financial institution.
“Shadow banks are generally defined as financial institutions that work like banks but aren’t subject to the same regulatory systems. Their growing power, which dwarfs the likes of Amazon, Facebook and Google (all of which BlackRock invests money in) means that financial market speculation has become one of the biggest movers of money in the world. Many critics of the market system believe this destabilizes the world economy by incentivizing risk, the trade in bad loans, and investing via unregulated markets, known as ‘dark pools.’ The rise of shadow banking has been blamed for causing the subprime mortgage catastrophe of 2007-2008 and the global recession that followed.
“Merz heads the supervisory board of the German branch of BlackRock, the biggest asset management corporation in the world, which controls some $6.3 trillion (€5.56 trillion) in assets — twice Germany’s gross domestic product. Two venerable German researchers, political scientist Peter Grottian and finance expert Werner Rügemer, appeared in Berlin on Wednesday to warn against letting Merz take control of the German government…
“BlackRock’s activities have attracted the attention of the authorities. Police searched BlackRock’s offices in Munich earlier this month as part of an investigation into the ‘cum-ex’ tax evasion scandal, which cost European taxpayers some €55 billion. That investigation is related to the period from 2007 to 2011, five years before Merz joined the company…
“‘There has never been a company like BlackRock before,’ said Heike Buchter, who published a book on the company in 2015, in a recent interview with the IPG Journal. ‘No one else has comparable access to companies, governments, regulators and central banks than BlackRock.’… During his career as a Bundestag member, he opposed the minimum wage and argued for cutting social benefits and limiting the power of trade unions. His possible ascension to the chancellery would therefore grant the financial power broker unprecedented control of Europe’s largest economy.”
Merz Challenges von der Leyen
Politico wrote on February 21:
“Ursula von der Leyen is about to face the most serious challenge to her leadership since she became European Commission president six years ago… ]Merz] has made no secret of his plans to weigh in much more heavily on EU affairs than his predecessor, Olaf Scholz… ‘The EU must not come to Washington as a dwarf — because then it will be treated as one,’ Merz told a recent campaign event in Germany.
“The signal from Berlin that Germany is ready to take on more leadership in the European Union should be welcome news for von der Leyen, who stands to gain a powerful conservative ally that happens to be well versed in EU affairs (Merz was a European lawmaker from 1989 to 1994). In Brussels, you’ll even often hear grumbling that a victory for Merz will simply mean that the EU will be run by two German Christian Democrats.
“But a closer look suggests that ‘Queen Ursula’… is unlikely to share the stage easily with the CDU leader. Von der Leyen, 66, has reigned supreme in Brussels ever since former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, her political patron, helped to catapult her into the powerful executive role in 2019. Indeed, while von der Leyen was promoted to defense minister under Merkel, Merz was shunted aside and quit politics to work as a corporate lawyer.
“Von der Leyen has taken advantage of French President Emmanuel Macron and Scholz’s relative weakness to accrue influence, centralizing the bloc’s response to the Covid pandemic and Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Now she’ll have to contend with one of Merkel’s fiercest rivals in the CDU, a connoisseur of EU affairs who will loom large as the most powerful conservative at the European leaders’ table, where he intends to increase the power of capitals at Brussels’ expense…”
Acknowledgement and Disclaimer:
These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.