BERLIN — Looks as if Germany's Angela Merkel is beginning her slow motion auf wiedersehen after announcing that she will step down as chancellor in 2021. <br />Following a disastrous showing by her center-right Christian Democratic Union party in recent state elections, Merkel dropped the bomb at a news conference in Berlin. <br />The lame duck, who has been chancellor since 2005, also said she she would be stepping aside as party leader, a position she has held since 2000. <br /><br />Merkel has long insisted that the chancellor should also be the leader of the ruling party, and that it was dangerous to have too many cooks in the kitchen.<br /><br />She's suddenly cool with dividing the roles between two people. Who would have guessed? <br />But how long can one of Europe's most powerful politicians last, now that her coalition government is increasingly unpopular and unstable? <br />After 13 years at the helm, was this finally a case of the migrant that broke the camel's back? <br /><br />Who will carry the torch as the global counterweight to Trump-esque nationalists now? <br /> <br />What's clear is that the vultures are circling. Will she even last until 2021?
