The rise of Trump has led to an unexpected twist in Germanys election: A resurgent left

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

BERLIN — The unconventional administration of President Trump may be causing consternation among American liberals. But here in Germany, the anchor of the European Union, Trump’s rise is helping fuel an unexpected surge of the left. 

What is happening in Germany is the kind of Trump bump perhaps never foreseen by his supporters — a boost not for the German nationalists viewed as Trump’s natural allies but for his fiercest critics in the center left. The Social Democrats (SPD) have bounced back under the charismatic Martin Schulz, the former head of the European Parliament who took over as party chairman last month and is now staging a surprisingly strong bid to unseat Chancellor Angela Merkel.

In a country that stands as a painful example of the disastrous effects of radical nationalism, Schulz is building a campaign in part around bold attacks on Trump. He has stopped well short of direct comparisons to Adolf Hitler, but Schulz recently mentioned Trump in the same speech in which he heralded his party’s resistance to the Nazis in the lead-up to World War II. 

“We will never give up our values, our freedom and democracy, no matter what challenges we are facing,” Schulz said in a recent speech. He added, “That a U.S. president wants to put up walls, is thinking aloud about torture and attacks women, religious communities, minorities, people with handicaps, artists and intellectuals with brazen and dangerous comments is a breach of taboo that’s unbearable.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/rise-of-trump-leads-to-an-unexpected-twist-in-germanys-election-a-resurgent-left/2017/02/16/152841e2-f2dc-11e6-9fb1-2d8f3fc9c0ed_story.html?utm_term=.0c43d48f3034&wpisrc=nl_rainbow&wpmm=1

[Blue_Tires]

1. The German left recognized early that Moscow was fucking around

and responded accordingly...

I'm jealous...

[Blanks]

2. Only 39% of Americans like him now...

Last edited Fri Feb 17, 2017, 08:09 PM - Edit history (1)

That's gonna translate into 'a resurgent left' in this country if we can get our message across.

[NewJeffCT]

8. I think the women's march

was the start of a resurgent left here in the US

[Blanks]

9. I think you're right...

I hope some of the people that are beginning to resist didn't vote. I think a lot of people didn't vote because there was no poll showing a Trump victory. I saw a lot of people on Facebook that were quiet about who they supported on Facebook until after the election, then suddenly they're all dyed in the wool Hillary fans.

I hope we don't make that mistake again.

[iluvtennis]

16. The young were apathetic in my opinion and wanted a ptotest "the system" vote for Stein or Johnson..

...they didn't take heed that protest vote was a vote for Trump and now they are "out in the streets" and some of us older wiser folks with them. Hope they learned there lesson

[NewJeffCT]

20. That was some of it

there was a protest vote for Stein or Johnson, or non-vote by staying home because they thought Hillary would win.

Also, some vote was suppressed - (1) the Cambridge Analytica group is very scary in how they can profile people on facebook and elsewhere online and fine tune ads to get them out to vote or to turn them off for voting for Clinton. (they tested reactions to over 175,000 ads!) They targeted minorities, young voters and young women and I think turnout from all 3 groups was down a bit in 2016 over 2008 and 2012. Just a bit makes a huge difference. (2) Voter suppresion laws in states like PA, MI, WI and NC contributed as well.

Comey was also maybe the biggest game changer ever. After the third debate, Trump was reeling and the ABC tracking poll had him down 51-38. I remember it as big news as Clinton broke 50%. However, the next day was news that Comey reopened the investigation and the tracking poll tanked for Clinton, putting her down 44-43. In one day, a 14 point swing. While she recovered to a 4-5 point lead within a week, the damage was done with a 10 point swing overall.

Without the Comey announcement, momentum stays with Clinton and her lead continues to grow. All those people that decided at the last minute to vote for Trump would either have voted Johnson or Stein or stayed home. Maybe more Clinton voters turn out because people want to vote for a winner? 10-11% of voters decided in the last week, overwhelmingly for Trump. That's 7-8% for Trump, 3-4% for Clinton of the total vote and that was the election. You're talking a Reagan-Mondale or Bush-Dukakis level win.

It's really a perfect storm - a close loss out of what was a landslide win in 2 weeks because all those factors came together.

[iluvtennis]

24. Agreed....!

[Alice11111]

13. Yeah, welcome to your 1st day as Prez, from around the world! Unprecedented. Storming the airport

Was brave and unbelievable. Not planned. No permits. DT will be ready next time though with some flamboyant half cocked defense. I trust DOD more than Comey, FBI. I guess he could call out natl guard. Last time, it was TSA, not sharp people, and local police. I fear a Kent State. Maybe we can continue to prevail in courts, but eventually it will go to supremes, unless DT backs down. I wonder how Prez Obama would handle this or JFK?

[Amaryllis]

17. And the airport protests.

[DK504]

10. Hope the DNC

can get good candidates to run in every state. We gotta push and not let up. Everything that comes out of the WH is poison and we need to stop him now.

[Blanks]

11. The thing to keep in mind is that Roger Ailes...

Is no longer in charge over at Fox News. Shep Smith had his moment yesterday, and I can't help but wonder if Fox News isn't gonna be a little less crazy.

We are never gonna make any progress as long as Fox News is the way they've been. Too many of my friends on Facebook look to Fox for all of their news.

It may actually be a strike against Fox News that Trump praised them at the same press conference when CNN was calling Trump out on the lie about his electoral victory.

[Alice11111]

15. There is an open seat in georgia for Rep by special election. The DNC is ignoring it.

[LAS14]

29. I got an e-mail from my Democratic town committee in Massachusetts...

...today with a link to support Jon Ossuff who was endorsed by John Lewis. I posted here and donated to his campaign.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10028667889

[zentrum]

22. Do you have

....a link to the precent stat in your headline?

I've seen all kinds of numbers, some as high as 44%. That's low, but still depressing.

[Blanks]

23. I think it's actually 39%...

I probably should correct that.

29% is where it'll be next week.



https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/news/politics/wp/2017/02/17/president-trumps-approval-rating-is-at-barack-obamas-all-time-low/

[zentrum]

27. Okay. Thanks nt

[Blanks]

37. I thought I saw 29%...

But it didn't show up when I googled it.

I thought there was a CNN story, but they changed the question. In previous weeks the question was 'support Trump' and when it dropped to 29% the question was 'strongly support Trump' which is kind of deceptive anyway, but that poll didn't show up when I googled it. It's better to be able to back it up with a link.

Thanks for questioning my claim.

[ailsagirl]

35. 39% is outrageous

as in "an outrage"-- I thought the clod was losing supporters like crazy

[Blanks]

36. Below 40%...

That's getting into dangerous territory for him.

That's gotta be getting close to where the republicans step away from him.

[ailsagirl]

38. Let's hope they do.

None of this should be surprising to anyone-- he was a major loose canon before he "won"-- the leopard cannot change its spots

[Eyeball_Kid]

3. Unexpected, and great news.

[TubbersUK]

4. I was hoping for this - good. n/t

[jeffreyi]

5. Good

Hope they can dodge the bullet/cannonball/nuclear bomb

[angstlessk]

7. What are you saying? If the left gets into power Putin/trump will nuke Europe?

[Ilsa]

6. Maybe France will notice. nt

[RedSpartan]

12. I like the picture of Trump and Putin in your footer.

http://thisamericancarnageblog.com/

[Cha]

14. I was thinking it should.. all over. after the world has

seen what happened to America.

[KittyWampus]

18. Let's hope the trend rubs off on France.

[anneboleyn]

19. Definitely. No neo-fascism in France. I hope they recognize the disaster the Trump regime

has been so far, and that of course everything will go downhill from here.

[byronius]

21. Everyone else gets the benefit of our misery. 'Always look on the bright side...'

[DFW]

25. This article is taking a fact and building up their own explanation for it

The SPD was drifting toward oblivion because they had tired slogans and no leader capable of keeping anyone awake for longer than 120 seconds uninterrupted. They dragged Schultz in from Brussels, where he was perfectly happy being, because they finally realized they could place in single digits in the upcoming national elections. Schultz is scoring big in the polls because he is a fresh and more dynamic face, not because of Trump (all politics IS local). Their slogans are still tired ("mehr Gerechtigkeit" has been around since the sixties), and Merkel is still so far to the left of Trump that she would fit comfortably in the Democratic Party in the USA.

[herding cats]

34. Thank you.

It's always nice to get a local perspective on political matters. As you said, "all politics is local." Which is a fact we too often tend to forget, or ignore, and then go on to view things through a lens colored by our own personal perceptions.

That was interesting and informative. Thank you, again!

[Dawson Leery]

26. This is "Scared Straight", International Edition.

Tories lost a seat to Lib Dems.
Romania put corrupt center left back into power (as the right was sympathetic to Putin).
Austria elected a Green to the Presidency.
Former Socialist Macron is favored to win the French Presidency over LePen and Fillon.

[frankieallen]

28. Why do the Germans give a crap who we elect in the US?

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

30. Are you defending Trump?

I'll give you three reasons why they might care.

First Trump's coziness with Putin. His apparent desire to pull support for NATO. Remember the eastern half of the country was occupied by Russia for over 30 years.

Second Russia's meddling in ours and several European elections.

Third they lived under a fascist regime under Hitler. They might appreciate democracy a bit more than people in this country do as a result.

[Stellar]

31. Good to hear!

Thanks for sharing.

[Buckeyeblue]

33. Maybe this is what we needed

To finally put the extreme right- wing to bed. Maybe a Hillery win would have just been more of the same that we saw under Obama:someone with good ideas who is up against a congress that wants them to fail.

This exercise is showing people what the extreme bull shit is really all about. They mean business. They are a lot bigger that old ladies protesting abortion clinics for jesus. They are crazier than a small church in the middle of no where that exists to hate gays. Trickle down economics is an after diner fart compared to these people.

As the masses truly begin to realize this, there will be a massive surge to the left. But it has to hurt some first.

The Germans understand that pain. They want nothing to do with it.