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Whether discontent flares into open rebellion depends largely on Ludwig Erhard —who got the astonishing news in Washington, just before calling on President Eisenhower. He was plainly distressed, but managed a smile for photographers and an equivocal comment: "I have never laid claim to the chancellorship so long as Dr. Adenauer was Chancellor." Privately he fired off a cable warning der Alte that unless he changed his mind again and accepted the presidency there might be grave trouble ahead. In Bonn, some of Erhard's supporters were already arguing that if he ever wants to be Chancellor he must resign from Adenauer's Cabinet. Otherwise, their reasoning ran, the German voter, who is a great respecter of authority, would conclude that Erhard, by letting Adenauer have his way, had demonstrated insufficient force of character to run the country.
"German Chancellors," sniped the Times of London, "are cast in a posture that elsewhere could be mistaken for arrogance." If this tart remark could be dismissed as evidence of anti-German British sentiments (returning Adenauer's mistrust of Britain), there were German papers whose anger went just as deep. Said Düsseldorf's independent Der Mittag:
"There are now only two alternatives. Either Adenauer is the unlimited master in the Christian Democratic Party and democracy becomes a farce or the party must vote no confidence so that he is neither President nor Chancellor. All other solutions are compromising and endanger the Federal Republic."