In Germany, Scholz the Bold Reverts to Scholz the Smurf
Two months after proclaiming a U-turn in foreign and defense policy, Germany’s chancellor seems to have lost heart.
Time to lead.
Photographer: Henning Schacht/Getty Images
Two German chancellors are struggling with each other inside Olaf Scholz. His country, its allies and their common adversary in the Kremlin have to find out which one they’re dealing with.
When Scholz took office in December, the temperament he displayed was still the one he had advertised during the campaign. In style, he was a knock-off of his predecessor, Angela Merkel — managing more than leading, governing in tiny increments rather than big steps, papering over controversies instead of taking stances, communicating through obfuscation more than inspiration. At the time, I called him a smurf.