Oliver Nachtwey is a professor of sociology at the University of Basel. He is coauthor of Offended Freedom: The Rise of Libertarian Authoritarianism.
Elon Musk’s appearances at the Trump inauguration and a rally for Germany’s Alternative für Deutschland don’t just hark back to the past. They fuse authoritarian nationalism with a distinctive postmodern, libertarian streak.
Long a leader of Germany’s left party Die Linke, Sahra Wagenknecht looks set on creating her own rival party. She accuses the Left of abandoning its historic base — but her appeal to conservative values divides the working class rather than uniting it.
Liberals praise modern Germany as Europe’s great success story. But behind the veneer of prosperity, resentment is building among ordinary Germans.
Only a left-wing revival can save Germany’s Social Democratic Party (SPD) from political extinction. But leaders like Andrea Nahles and Olaf Scholz are not up to the task.
As German elections loom this Sunday, cracks may be starting to show in Merkel’s radical centrist reign.