Merkel slams Merz: Has Germany’s CDU opened the door to the far-right?

Angela Merkel has spoken, and she’s not happy. Three years after stepping down as Germany’s chancellor, she’s publicly criticizing her successor, CDU leader Friedrich Merz, for breaking a long-standing taboo: relying on far-right AfD votes to pass an anti-immigration motion in parliament. With Germany’s elections just weeks away, Merkel’s intervention has ignited a fierce debate over whether the firewall against the far-right is crumbling for good. What does this mean for Germany, Europe, and the future of mainstream conservatism?