The agreement was a long time in coming, but finally on Friday, Germany's two biggest political parties -- the Christian Democrats under incoming chancellor Angela Merkel and the Social Democrats of outgoing chancellor Gerhard Schröder -- managed to complete their marriage of convenience. And Germany is doing its best to contain its excitement.

So far, successfully. For weeks, headlines have been full of a grocery list of tax-rises, benefit cuts and desperate-sounding explanations as to how the incoming coalition will balance Germany's listing budget while jump-starting its economy at the same time. The result is a cadre of political leaders who -- while looking relieved that they managed to hammer out an agreement between two parties who have spent decades chucking buckets of mud at each other -- seem aware that their new government is not likely to be a popular one.

And if the mass-circulation tabloid Bild is any indication, then there is nowhere to go but up in the popularity contest. Already on Saturday, the paper started what looks to be an all-out smear campaign against the new coalition. "This Is How Expensive it Will Be for You!" screamed the weekend headline, referring to the tax hikes and tax-loophole closures agreed to by the SPD and CDU. On Monday, the paper continued with the headline, "Grand Coalition Is Telling Everyone to Pay Up: Only the Politicians Are Sacrificing Nothing!" The crusade continues in the paper's editorial. Above an inane comment from gap-toothed columnist Franz Josef Wagner about how much he likes "political marriages of conveniences" is a sharp-tongued piece calling for politicians to set an example. The editorial pointedly questions Merkel's claim that everyone in Germany will have to share the burdens of reform. While the retirement age is raised to 67 and pensions capped for a number of years, politicians can continue to retire at age 55. "Of course making politicians work a few extra years won't eliminate billions in debt, but politicians have to set an example."

But even as Bild is the shrillest of the critics, Germany's quality dailies have also jumped into the fray. The financial daily Handelsblatt runs a front-page story on the critique Merkel is facing from within her own party and accompanies it with a not-so-complimentary commentary. The end of an era has been reached, the paper writes: the era, beginning in the 1960s, of spending billions more than tax money brought in. "That this eventually would result in higher taxes was predictable." But rather than creating a clear-sighted government, Germany has ended up with a coalition filled with contradictions. The new government "testifies to fear of courage. The leaders of Germany's two biggest parties don't have enough courage to make deep cuts to the social net and to subsidies." Part of that, the paper is willing to grant, comes from the two parties' inexperience with working together. But they will have to figure it out quickly.

In order to avoid political gridlock in Berlin, the CDU and SPD both conceded considerable territory to the other party, putting a damper on any plans for massive economic reforms. What a shame, argues the center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. "No one can be satisfied with this coalition treaty," the paper's editorialist writes. "The coalition partners are calling their pact 'courage and humanity,' but the courage to bring about fundamental change demonstrated by the CDU and its Bavarian sister party the Christian Social Union before the election only shines through dimly in parts of the treaty." Of course, it does take courage to push through a budget that relies so heavily on borrowing that it is unconstitutional and to jack up sales taxes just as you enter office. "But it would have been better and more courageous to reduce subsidies and tax levels." The question, though, remains as to how much of the agreed  reforms the parties will actually bother to tackle. The paper notes that the SPD has changed its political skin in recent years as often as a chameleon. That, of course, is in direct contrast to Merkel, who has established a strong reputation as a reform-minded politician who almost lost the election by pegging her political future to tough reform measures. With all the resistance she faced in the run-up to becoming chancellor, it would be bizarre if she were to abandon her reform plans now that she has risen to power, the paper concludes.

In its spin on the grand coalition, the left-of-center Süddeutsche Zeitung takes aim at the "know it all" lobbyists, who took to the airwaves over the weekend with their dissatisfaction over the coalition contract. Yes, the critics are right in complaining that any serious reforms have been pushed
back, the paper opines. "Initially, at least for the coming year, the Union and the SPD have agreed on measures intended to spur the economy." The hope is that, paired with a general economic upswing, this will prepare the country for the next round of reforms. Besides, the incoming government has already accomplished one highly positive thing for the country: It has changed the tone of the political debate -- with two formerly antagonistic parties in a single government, the conversation has become more civilized. "The first winner of this new government is Germany's political culture," the paper concludes. "And that's more than a question of style. The debate is more restrained, it is business-like and it is more likely to deliver improved results."

The Financial Times Deutschland advises patience. Sure the papers have been full of stories about all the deep cuts and higher taxes that are around the corner. But, the paper points out, most of the changes won't go into effect until 2007. In other words, Germany's new government "has made a risky bet. They have placed all their cards on 2006 and that next year will see a noticeable improvement in economic growth." We will only be able to judge the coalition's program when we see what happens with the economy in 2006. "It would be false to damn this coalition contract. Despite a couple of symbolic absurdities … it deserves to be passed and put into practice."

The conservative daily Die Welt, though, has no time for patience and slams the new government before it has even taken office. Calling the CDU-SPD coalition the "united social democrats," the paper calls the agreement "devastating." "More state, higher tax burden, strangling of the economy in the name of 'courage and humanity:' that is the core of this government program. It will stimulate the black economy and tax flight and will drive even more companies out of Germany. The paper also thinks it knows why this is. Showing its true neo-liberal colors, the editorial argues that Germany is afraid of freedom and doesn't trust itself -- because of the country's 20th century history -- to increase the freedom of the individual. But it's time to cast aside this self doubt. "This reform recipe was written for a patient that doesn’t exist anymore," the paper concludes.