As Merz scrambles for support, Germany's identity crisis is laid bare

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Friedrich Merz has led Germany since 2025ByJessica ParkerBerlin correspondentA set of bumper local elections has thrown Germany, and its government, off balance.Chancellor Friedrich Merz may now be a man on borrowed time. His coalition government is in crisis.But this breakdown of business as usual in Germany has been brewing for years.It's a nation wrestling with new, uncomfortable and unresolved realities.Think of certain stereotypes about Germany, and think again.A country dominated by boring, consensus-driven politics? Not any more.A confident, powerhouse economy at the cutting edge of car-making? Yesterday's story.A nation that can be used as a byword for impressive efficiency? The trains don't even run on time.Many Germans I've spoken to feel their nation has drifted away from the things that once anchored their identity.And the question of what next is, as yet, unanswered.That uncertainty is currently embodied by a beleaguered chancellor weakened by bruising regional election results.Image source, ReutersImage caption, The far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party has made strong gains in recent local electionsIn the last fort...