Merz wants your real name on the internet and calls free speech an American habit

Merz says that he wants new laws that would make it impossible to post anonymously on social media.

He says “don’t give me any of that free speech nonsense”

He also says that the state must be able to protect its citizens from misinformation.

Many famous writers published… pic.twitter.com/wJTbI1jQFQ

— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) September 16, 2026

Factcheck:
He said it. Tuesday in Berlin, talking to Jugend forscht kids. German line: “Bitte komme mir keiner mit Free Speech. Das hat mit Free Speech nichts mehr zu tun.” Close enough to “don’t give me that free speech stuff.” Not a signed bill. He wants a real-name rule. He has wanted that since winter. He called U.S.-style free speech a libertarian idea he does not share. He said the state should protect people from false info, insults, and discrimination. He tied anonymous posts and bots to the AfD win in Saxony-Anhalt. He waved off the kid who asked about sources and investigative reporting. Locke and Paine used fake names. That history is real. It is not a German statute.