Merkel Has Just Handed Her Rivals a Future

The likely appointment of Hamburg Mayor Olaf Scholz as finance minister is probably the most important outcome of the German coalition talks, which finally ended on Wednesday after another all-night session. It's an important concession by Chancellor Angela Merkel that could hurt her party in the next electoral cycle and even set the stage for a revival of the German center-left.

After barely managing to convince delegates at a party conference last month to back further coalition talks with Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) and their Bavarian allies the Christian Social Union (CSU), leaders of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) looked for a big win in the final phase of negotiations. It could have been a deal to stop doctors from charging more for private health insurance patients or curbs on temporary employment. Some progress -- but not a huge prize for the SPD -- was achieved on both issues. Instead, Merkel and her conservatives compromised on something that may end up being more important for the SPD -- ministerial portfolios. The center-left party got three of the key posts: finance, foreign affairs and labor. As CDU legislator Olav Gutting quipped on Twitter, "At least we've kept the chancellor's office."