Merz the Anti-Merkel Stands for Election to Replace Merkel in CDU | Armstrong Economics

Friedrich Merz is the anti-Merkel who is standing for election in December to replace her as head of the CDU. Merz is also chairman of Blackrock there in Germany. He has been a German lawyer and politician of the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU). He served as a Member of the European Parliament 1989–1994, a member of the Bundestag 1994–2009, and as the chairman of CDU/CSU parliamentary group 2000–2002. In 2018 he announced his candidacy in the CDU leadership election in December 2018. Merz has described himself as socially conservative and economically liberal which means he is pro-business. He supports the European Union and NATO but sees the link to the United States as critical. Meanwhile, Merz described himself as “upper middle class” yet he earns 1 million euros a year and has two private jets – not one. The rumor is Goldman Sachs is in its Crash & Burn mode for paying bribes and Blackrock will replace it as the most powerful financial institution in the world.
— Read on www.armstrongeconomics.com/international-news/politics/merz-the-anti-merkel-stands-for-election-to-replace-merkel-in-cdu/

Germany: Turkish-Muslim Appointed Second-In-Command of Domestic Intelligence

Sinan Selen, a 46-year-old Istanbul-born counter-terrorism expert, will be the first Muslim to fill a top leadership position within Germany’s intelligence community. Throughout his government career, Selen has been resolute in confronting Islamic
— Read on www.gatestoneinstitute.org/13334/germany-domestic-intelligence

Let’s hope this is not virtue signaling at the expense of German security.

The Fate of Germany v Euro – The Export Economic Model Risks | Armstrong Economics

QUESTION: Mr. Armstrong; I watched the new documentary on your solution. I really want to thank you for everything you do and for free. It is so nice to see someone who actually gives back and has no personal agenda to enrich themselves. My question is this. You mentioned the reason why the United States economy was the envy of the world and differentiated it from Germany which has an export model economy that is why they supported the euro, to begin with. What do you see for Germany ahead? Thank you CB ANSWER: Germany has an export-dependent economy which has directly benefited from the continent-wide trade liberalization and the creation of the Euro which eliminated foreign exchange fluctuations for German manufacturers in Europe at least. However, that simply means that Germany also has the most to lose from a worsening Euro crisis and a resulting wave of Euroscepticism. The political freedoms lost with the creation of the Euro will tear Europe apart. The refusal to consolidate the debt within Europe was profound. The Italy Crisis demonstrates what I have been warning about. BECAUSE there is no central debt, Brussels sticks its nose into every budget of every member state. The economic conditions within Europe are different between each member. Germany is an export economy and Greece is a tourist economy. There are great differences between each member so one policy does not fit all. They are trying to PRETEND they are creating the United States of Europe but that is a joke. The refusal to have consolidated the debts created an unsustainable political union. The USA has a federal debt and budget. Washington does not stick its nose into the budgets of all 50 states. They issue their own debt which is NOT ACCEPTABLE for reserves of any bank. They are also all on their own paying different rates of interest according to their credit rating. In the EU, they are trying to manage the budgets of every member which will only lead to political differences. The structure is absurd and then the banks have to be politically correct and hold the debt of all member states. Thus, the risk becomes if one member is in a crisis, they bring down the entire system. In the USA, if Illinois goes bankrupt, it has no impact on the dollar, the national debt, or politics in Washington. The greatest risk to Germany is the collapse of the Euro means that the single currency relieved their manufacturers of having to manage currency risk. Suddenly, the currency risk returns, the export model fails, and the lack of a domestic consumer market means that the economic conditions in Germany decline rapidly because of their dependence upon everyone else doing well.
— Read on www.armstrongeconomics.com/markets-by-sector/foreign-exchange/euro/the-fate-of-germany-v-euro-the-export-economic-model-risks/

Life in the EU

Can Merkel Survive the Hesse Election? | Armstrong Economics

Merkel remains the face of Europe outside of the continent and the risk of Merkel losing the Chancellorship will be a serious crack in the confidence of the Euro. The Hesse election is now taking place and what is at risk here is Chancellor Angela Merkel and her grand coalition. The voters will decide Sunday whether Merkel’s supporters will survive politically. What is at stake is the future of the CDU itself and possibly also her SPD colleague. With the rise of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the socialistic ideas of the SPD, the SPD is coming to the conclusion that they see no future in maintaining the coalition with Merkel’s CDU. Following the Bavarian election two weeks ago, the rise of the AfD has placed Markel at risk. The Bavarian election turned out to be truly a referendum on the CSU’s anti-Merkel position in Germany. Under pressure from the nativist AfD, the CSU chose to imitate the far-right party’s anti-immigrant and anti-European rhetoric to win with whatever lies it would take. The coalition is breaking apart and a loss in Hesse may see political change in Germany before the end of November. There is a rising view that Merkel has to go because of her immigrate/refugee policy that has undermined not just Germany, but the entire EU as a whole. A loss for the CDU in Hesse will most likely put pressure on Merkel to step down. In the CDU talk is that the Secretary-General Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer has the best chances for succession. Ironically, Kramp-Karrenbauer does not want to be endorsed by Merkel as the talk behind the curtain goes. The fear is that Merkel has perhaps less the 20% support among Germans in general and that can be toxic for anyone she would endorse as her heir. Some are claiming that Merkel can still prevail. Other say she would have to be dragged out by her hair before she would relinquish he political position. Meanwhile, the Euro hangs in the balance.
— Read on www.armstrongeconomics.com/uncategorized/can-merkel-survive-the-hesse-election/