Merkel says Trump admires power of dictators

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During a conversation with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour on “News Central” Monday, former German Chancellor Angela Merkel shared insights about Donald Trump’s apparent fascination with authoritarian leadership styles.

When Amanpour brought up Merkel’s conditional welcome of Trump’s initial election, which was based on democratic values and principles, she asked about Trump’s evident interest in the Russian president.

Trump has "fascination at the sheer power" of dictators, Angela Merkel tells @amanpour in a wide-ranging new interview.

She speaks about her experience in dealing with President Trump, the fate of Ukraine, and more.

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Full discussion airs tomorrow at 1pm ET | 6pm GMT on @cnni pic.twitter.com/q1FZnPUJW4

— CNN International PR (@cnnipr) December 2, 2024

“Well, in the way that he spoke about Putin, the way that he spoke about the North Korean president, obviously, apart from critical remarks he made, there was always a kind of fascination at the sheer power of what these people could do. So my impression always was that he dreamt of actually overriding maybe all those parliamentary bodies that he felt were, in a way, an encumbrance upon him and that he wanted to decide matters on his own. And in a democracy, well, you cannot reconcile that with democratic values,” Merkel responded.

President Trump: "I said to Angela Merkel, Angela, how many Chevrolets do you have in the middle of Germany? She said none. I said how many do you have in Munich? She said none. Do you know how many Mercedes-Benzes, BMW's and Volkswagen's we have? Millions. I said, it's going to… pic.twitter.com/JaNw8B99CL

— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) August 26, 2024

The former German leader’s observations highlighted Trump’s apparent admiration for leaders who wielded unconditional power, suggesting a concerning disconnect between his leadership inclinations and fundamental democratic principles.