Merz's fabled beer mat 'unharmed' after German election debate gaffe
A storied beer mat once used by German conservative leader Friedrich Merz to outline his proposals for a streamlined tax system is "unharmed," a German museum director said on Monday, after the coaster made an appearance during a pre-election TV debate.
Harald Biermann, president of the House of History museum, said the object was a "robust beer mat" that is "unharmed and still completely intact," after being dropped by a moderator during the four-way contest between Merz and his rivals to become Germany's next chancellor following the election on February 23.
Merz, whose centre-right CDU/CSU alliance is far ahead in the polls, famously wrote down his tax proposals on the coaster in 2003, when he was challenging former chancellor Angela Merkel for the party leadership.
The mat later made its way to the museum in the western city of Bonn.
"Museums are always faced with the dilemma of wanting to both preserve historical originals and communicate them through presentations," said Biermann.
"Presenting them in a TV programme reaches an audience that would otherwise not get to see some of the historical originals, so it is also part of the museum's educational mission," he added.
The debate on Sunday saw Chancellor Olaf Scholz defend his administration's record on migration, the economy and support for Ukraine from attacks by Merz and Alice Weidel from the far-right Alternative for Germany.
Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck, from the Greens, also took part in the heated showdown.
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