The unsuccessful election of three constitutional judges has presented the black-red coalition with its first real shock test. No majority, no plan B – and a summer interview with Friedrich Merz that raises more questions than it answers. Gordon Repinski analyzes how deep the rift really is between the coalition agreement and political maneuvering – and whether Jens Spahn is still the right man at the faction’s helm.
In a 200-second interview, Dirk Wiese, SPD parliamentary managing director, talks about trust, responsibility, and why he now sees the Union as obligated to repeat the election in September with the controversial candidate Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf.
Also: Trade dispute with the USA. The EU is delaying its counter-tariffs – is this a clever move or political capitulation? Romanus Otte from the Pro newsletter “Industry and Trade” assesses the new potential for escalation – and explains why Donald Trump is once again dictating the agenda with his tariff strategy.
And finally: A clandestine meeting of two political outsiders in Thuringia.
The Berlin Playbook is available as a podcast at 5 a.m. Gordon Repinski and the POLITICO team bring you up to speed on politics every morning – concise, European, insightful.
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More from Berlin Playbook host and Executive Editor of POLITICO in Germany, Gordon Repinski, can also be found here:
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