Germany's Nationalist-Populists Elect New Leadership While Leftists Protest

PJ Media ^ | 12-03-2017 | Michael van der Galien

[Michael van der Galien]

At the Alternative für Deutschland's (AfD: Alternative for Germany) convention this weekend, the eurosceptic German nationalists elected new leadership. While the party's members did so, leftist agitators took to the streets to protest the far-right party.

It was a historic convention for AfD. Until this year, the party had no members in the Bundestag, Germany's Parliament. That changed in 2017, however, when they won more than 90 seats. Although some MP's left the party and took their seat with them (among whom former leader Frauke Petry), AfD still has 92 seats left.

"More mature, more adult, smarter" is how Meuthen described the AfD, which would be the largest opposition party in the Bundestag if Merkel's CDU forms another grand coalition with the center-left Social Democrats. That would allow AfD members to speak first in Bundestag debates.

Indeed, there was much self-congratulation on Saturday at the AfD's convention in the northern city of Hanover. The first order of the day was a recap of election successes in 14 of Germany's 16 state parliaments (with a promise to take Hesse and Bavaria next year) and a round of applause for the AfD's 92 newly minted Bundestag lawmakers.

At the convention, the party's leaders took several swipes at Angela Merkel. AfD's spokesman Jörg Meuthen said, for instance:

There are people in this country who say 'We can do it,' and those who actually get something done.

That was clearly aimed at the chancellor who told Germans "we can do it" when people expressed concerns about the tsunami of immigrants from the Middle East and Africa that have come to Germany in recent years.

In the end, the party's members elected Meuthen and current co-chair Alexander Gauland as their two leaders.

[fieldmarshaldj]

“far-right party” = Moderate, mainstream political party.

[lowbuck]

If the AfD would broaden their message they should improve their result going forward.

First they were the “anti-Euro” party but after Mutti opened the door to who knows what they focused on controlled immigration. Sort of like President Trump except they are not calling for a wall (that is being done by some of the eastern European countries).

I guess the best comparison is the TEA party got trashed by the media and elites but look where that evolved . . . Mr. Trump.

Should be interesting going forward if AfD can keep from shooting itself in the foot!

[Don W]

That’s what I was going to post. “Far right” only because those describing it as such are so far left Karl Marx is considered a right-winger.

[fieldmarshaldj]

It is evil the epithets the media throws at patriots that want their borders protected from lawless hordes. I’m sure if said media types and their families had to live amongst the hive of scum and villainy they champion, dodging thieves, rapists and murderers on a daily basis, they’d change their tune.