A Weak German Coalition?

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius torpedoed his own bill to reintroduce conscription yesterday. Pistorius wanted to shift gently toward conscription, having all men, and any women who wanted, fill in a questionnaire assessing their fitness for military service. It was supposed to nudge young Germans toward signing up.

The Christian Democratic Union, the largest party in the coalition, is in more of a hurry. If too few people volunteered, it wanted a lottery system that could draft young men at random to make up the shortfall.

• Pistorius hated the change so much that he threatened to lead some Social Democrats to vote down his own bill.

Meanwhile, 18 Christian Democrat MPs have held up the government’s pension reform, arguing that Social Democrats’ reforms are too expensive.

No one is talking about the end of the coalition—yet. But in 2009, Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry warned that the soon-coming strong German leader could perhaps “take advantage of a weak coalition.” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is a stronger leader than his predecessor, Olaf Scholz. But this week’s news is a reminder that his power is still based on a fragile coalition. Its failings will pave the way for a new type of strongman leadership.