West Germany: Marriages Without Love

In Bonn, the construction of coalitions gets complicated

The parliamentary ploy bears the sinister label of Königsmord (murder of a king), but the intent is entirely bloodless. As soon as Chancellor Helmut Schmidt's ruling coalition crumbled two weeks ago, Opposition Leader Helmut Kohl pressed ahead with his plan to become West Germany's first Christian Democratic Chancellor in 13 years. Rebuffing Schmidt's call for elections, Kohl prepared to introduce a rarely used vote of no confidence in the Bundestag to bring down Schmidt's minority government immediately. If his strategy works, Kohl will move into...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!