The Chancellor is seeking, in my view out of an unbelievable mixture of arrogance and overconfidence, to claim he won the election. But the truth is both camps didn't achieve their goals.

I see it as a signal for Angela Merkel.

I see it as a step toward stability that we need to explain to the Social Democrats to stick to the rules.

A lot of my friends are foreigners. The public doesn't like the plan to give 4 million foreigners German passports. They believe that will hinder the efforts to integrate the foreigners.

Schroeder was in office; he no longer has a majority, ... He must go.

Before we can move forward to coalition talks, it must be clear that the CDU/CSU has the right to the chancellery. The SPD is not yet ready for that.

I'm sometimes astonished at how much the German voter can take of this.

There is a leap from sounding each other out to coalition talks. In doing that, it must be clear that the (Christian Democratic) Union has the right to propose the chancellor and will nominate Angela Merkel.

We are not satisfied.