Merzsplaining: the chancellor's overconfidence is unpopular in Germany. But could it be what Europe needs? | Joseph de Weck

"Olaf Scholz was economical with words and drew mockery for his wooden, monosyllabic replies as the Scholzomat or even the coma chancellor. Scholz was not entirely different from his predecessor. Angela Merkel grew up in East Germany's communist dictatorship and learned early that words could be dangerous. She spoke cautiously, almost clinically, in the monotone of a central banker. Every word served a purpose."

"Friedrich Merz, by contrast, is anything but a soporific speaker. The trained lawyer has a sharp tongue and visibly enjoys the sound of his own voice. In this, the conservative chancellor resembles the French president, Emmanuel Macron—another beau parleur. And like Macron, Merz is a know-all. He rarely misses a chance to show his audience how clever he is."

"Merz's overconfidence has a tendency to backfire. He sometimes loses his audience in explanatory detours and his command of the facts is less sure-footed than his delivery suggests. In a recent wide-ranging interview on one of Germany's leading political podcasts, Machtwechsel, Merz delivered a flurry of inaccurate or contradictory-sounding statements. Listeners could not help but experience a sense of Fremdschamen—a German word that might best be expressed as cringe."

German political culture traditionally values restraint in speech, exemplified by philosophers like Herder and recent leaders Merkel and Scholz who spoke cautiously and deliberately. Friedrich Merz, the current conservative chancellor, represents a stark departure from this tradition. As a trained lawyer, Merz is an engaging, verbose speaker who enjoys displaying his intelligence and rhetorical skill, similar to French President Macron. However, this approach alienates German voters who prefer affable but not overly slick politicians. Merz's overconfidence frequently backfires, causing him to lose audiences through unnecessary explanations and factual inaccuracies. In a recent podcast interview, he made multiple contradictory statements, including falsely claiming Germany was Europe's only country with a triple-A sovereign debt rating, when Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden, and Luxembourg also hold top ratings.

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