Curious minds select the most fascinating podcasts from around the world. Discover hand-piqd audio recommendations on your favorite topics.
piqer for: Globalization and politics Global finds
Freelance journalist currently based in Berlin, chronicling the effects of populism on elections in Europe. Former Washington-based political reporter for CBS News, Politico and National Journal.
As the coalition drama in Germany took yet another dramatic turn early this week — Interior Minister Horst Seehofer reportedly offered up his resignation following a showdown with Chancellor Angela Merkel over migration, then changed his mind — it's worth stopping and looking at the region of the country that is behind the current turmoil: Bavaria, home to Seehofer's Christian Social Union (CSU).
The New York Times's Katrin Bennhold does just that in a piece published this weekend: despite the German state of the economy, low unemployment and relatively successful integration of refugees, voter anger is fueling a sharp shift to the right. In Bavaria's state elections this October, this is manifesting in increased support for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) — and in the CSU's apparent desire to imitate the AfD's rhetoric on immigration issues.
Bavaria has, as the article notes, an outsized identity: it is "the Texas of Germany", a comparison that, as an American, I've often used myself. That outsized identity is clearly true in politics, too: expect to hear plenty more about Bavaria in the coming weeks and months as the state's election is, after all, clearly a big part of Seehofer's calculus. In the meantime, Germany observers will be anxiously awaiting the results of Monday's meeting between Merkel and Seehofer.