CDU MP Philipp Amthor slams AfD leader Björn Höcke over identity comments

On 14 June 2026, CDU parliamentarian Philipp Amthor publicly attacked Thuringian AfD chairman Björn Höcke in the Bundestag, calling him a “dünnbrettbohrender Schwachkopf” (thin‑board‑drilling weakhead). The dispute arose after Höcke said in a podcast that western Germany is populated by “German‑speaking Americans” while the east still has “German‑speaking Germans”, and criticised Germany’s trans‑Atlantic alignment.

Höcke, whose Thuringian AfD branch is classified by the German domestic intelligence service as a secured right‑extremist organization, repeatedly warns of “multiculturalism”, demographic decline and the “end of Germany”. His rhetoric has also highlighted a contrast with AfD co‑leader Alice Weidel, whose openly gay marriage and family background stand at odds with Höcke’s nationalist narrative.