It’s Time For Angela Merkel To Face The Music

After her Christian Democrats Party (CDU) suffered their second electoral blow in two weeks – slumping to their lowest level since 1990 – German Chancellor Angela Merkel asked if it was too late to say sorry. Of course, “es tut mir leid” is the Germans’ lengthy way of apologizing so nobody really got that she was referencing her idol Justin Bieber. 

“If I could turn back time, I would by many, many years,” Merkel said, loosely referencing her other idol, Cher. The CDU only won 17.6% in the Berlin election, down from 23.3% in their last election in 2011. Merkel is accepting the blame for her party’s failing numbers, as many are still resistant to her open-door refugee policy. The anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) only snagged 14% of the vote, but the margin between them and the established, moderate CDU is striking. While not admitting defeat, Merkel is facing the music that her uncompromising “commitment to refugees” has pissed off a lot of people.