The party is “like a czar”s court,” complained the chairman of the CDU/CSU”s association of small and medium-sized businesses and the economy in the “suddeutsche zeitung” (thursday). “There is no longer any fundamental debate, because everything in ms. Merkel”s CDU is offered as having no alternative,” he told the “leipziger volkszeitung” (wednesday). Other economic politicians disagreed. More conservative accents are also being discussed.

72-year-old schlarmann, who for years has repeatedly criticized merkel and the CDU”s profile, complained that it would be "impossible" for potential successors to rise to the top under the "merkel system. The party is "immobilized with a feel-good program for the next federal party conference". He doubted in the "leipziger volkszeitung" that the union with merkel at the top could still get enough votes in elections.