CDU Gen.Sec. Peter Tauber and Angela Merkel in party HQ for a meeting on Germany's election results, 25 September 2017. Michael Kappeler/Press Association. All rights reserved.She is known as die Mutti, ‘the mama’, and she is once again at the helm of Germany, in spite of a far from exciting election performance.
Do German citizens truly need a mother to guide them through the perils of the global age? With or (now much more likely) without the support of a Grand Coalition, Angela Merkel might stay in power until 2021, which would mean 16 years as Chancellor, even more than Adenauer (14 years) and on a par with her mentor, Helmut Kohl. Is this good for Germany and for Europe itself, which is sometimes regarded as slightly more than an ‘appendage’ of Germany and its old partner, France? These polls demonstrate that, beyond appearances, Germany does have problems, which is not a good omen for the ‘Old Continent’ as a whole.
By contrast with a stereotypical media representation, not everything is alright in the Bundesrepublik’s economy. First of all, there is no economic miracle. In the years 2013-17 economic growth has been rather modest, unless we consider a rate of 1.5-2% an outstanding achievement. Furthermore, a large part of this growth has occurred because of one sector – construction – which is usually very volatile.
