Horror Show in Oval Office at Meeting of Merz and Trump
Published in Frankfurter Rundschau
(Germany) on 5 June 2025
by Christine Dankbar (link to original)
Friedrich Merz visits Donald Trump. No debacle happens in the Oval Office. But looking more closely, there is only one word to describe this visit: depressing.
Thirty minutes of a jumbled deluge of words from the U.S. president in the Oval Office, a silent German chancellor who says the occasional keyword at the right times — that is what a good day for German-American relations looks like these days. One can, of course, see that as a success. And it certainly is one for Chancellor Friedrich Merz. After all, he was not made a fool of by Donald Trump. That is more than some heads of state have been able to say for themselves in the last weeks and months.
Friedrich Merz on the Visit with Donald Trump: U.S. President Again Shows Himself to Be an Egomaniac
But looking more closely, there is only one word to describe this first visit by the new German government leader with the U.S. president: depressing. In every respect. The president again showed himself to be a total egomaniac who only accepts his distorted view of things. Merz wisely inserted himself into this bizarre administration because to do otherwise would just have made it worse. Sometimes, after all, silence is golden in international diplomacy.
No one who is committed to democratic, values-oriented politics can be happy about it, because Merz was also silent on political assessments that are downright absurd, like that concerning war parties Russia and Ukraine. Trump compared the invaded land and its aggressor to two young boys who are beating each other up in the schoolyard and who just need to be allowed to prove themselves before breaking them up. There is no interpretation in which such a statement even approaches anything like a rational assessment.
Meeting Between Merz and Trump: For Europe, There Is a Clear Message — Emancipate Yourself!
Otherwise, the visit in the Oval Office presented the opportunity to get an unvarnished impression of the U.S. president, who, once again, wound himself up in childish excitement. It included an interesting perspective on the ruptured relationship with Elon Musk, who criticized Trump’s bill — but not Trump himself, as the latter noted several times. It remains to be seen what consequences Merz’s visit in Washington will really have. But it’s not all that important. The half-life of agreements with Donald Trump is, after all, rather short. However, there is a clear message to be found: Europe, emancipate yourself.
Thirty minutes of a jumbled deluge of words from the U.S. president in the Oval Office, a silent German chancellor who says the occasional keyword at the right times — that is what a good day for German-American relations looks like these days. One can, of course, see that as a success. And it certainly is one for Chancellor Friedrich Merz. After all, he was not made a fool of by Donald Trump. That is more than some heads of state have been able to say for themselves in the last weeks and months.
Friedrich Merz on the Visit with Donald Trump: U.S. President Again Shows Himself to Be an Egomaniac
But looking more closely, there is only one word to describe this first visit by the new German government leader with the U.S. president: depressing. In every respect. The president again showed himself to be a total egomaniac who only accepts his distorted view of things. Merz wisely inserted himself into this bizarre administration because to do otherwise would just have made it worse. Sometimes, after all, silence is golden in international diplomacy.
No one who is committed to democratic, values-oriented politics can be happy about it, because Merz was also silent on political assessments that are downright absurd, like that concerning war parties Russia and Ukraine. Trump compared the invaded land and its aggressor to two young boys who are beating each other up in the schoolyard and who just need to be allowed to prove themselves before breaking them up. There is no interpretation in which such a statement even approaches anything like a rational assessment.
Meeting Between Merz and Trump: For Europe, There Is a Clear Message — Emancipate Yourself!
Otherwise, the visit in the Oval Office presented the opportunity to get an unvarnished impression of the U.S. president, who, once again, wound himself up in childish excitement. It included an interesting perspective on the ruptured relationship with Elon Musk, who criticized Trump’s bill — but not Trump himself, as the latter noted several times. It remains to be seen what consequences Merz’s visit in Washington will really have. But it’s not all that important. The half-life of agreements with Donald Trump is, after all, rather short. However, there is a clear message to be found: Europe, emancipate yourself.
Previous article![]( "From Harvard to West Point — The Underlying Logic of Trump’s Regulation of University Education")
Next article![]( "The Trump–Musk Conflict: Consequences*")