Surprising no one, the German Bundestag approved the treaty for a European constitution in a one-sided vote on Thursday, 569 to 23. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has been pushing hard for approval of the constitution, hoping that German resolve will help convince Euro-skeptics like France and Holland to also jump aboard the constitutional bandwagon. While German opinion isn't quite as unanimous as the vote would make it seem, there's a reason: Public debate here hasn't been as pointed as it has in France because there will be no popular referendum, and therefore the public's opinion has only a very indirect effect. On Thursday, German commentators -- while employing a wide variety of metaphors -- seem to agree it might have been better for the country to wrestle a bit more with the idea before giving it the rubber stamp.

The Berliner Zeitung opens its editorial with a familiar comparison: "The European Union is sometimes compared to a bicycle: If it stops, it falls over. In this sense, the Bundestag on Thursday is pedalling furiously to make sure the European vehicle stays in motion." But while the Bundestag will vote almost unanimously, writes the paper, "among the country's citizens the general opinion is far from unanimous." And there is something being lost in the translation between the two very different processes. "Never before has the Continent dealt so intensively with the question of which direction it should take.... In Germany, without a referendum, this essential debate has been kept under a glass jar." The intentions behind the decision to not have a referendum are good, but the German government is going about it all wrong -- as is the EU. "The constitution's supporters in Berlin and Brussels haven't been able to convincingly portray the advantages of the EU nor of its constitution." The paper goes on to list some -- the ease of travel, cheaper mobile phone rates, European peace -- but ends up focussing on the means rather than the end. "A German 'ja' to the constitution is right, but the way that it's happened is questionable."

The center-right daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung argues that EU unity is a part of Germany's raison d'etat. "There was never any doubt that the German Bundestag would approve the 'treaty for European constitution' with great unanimity, and that it would far exceed the two-thirds majority necessary." The reasons for this are varied, writes the paper, and lay both in the history of Germany's political parties and of course in the history of Germany itself -- the German push for European unity calmed any other historical fears about German reunification in 1990. But there are many good reasons to approve the constitution that have less to do with history and more to do with the future. "The primary merit of the constitution is that it organizes the EU in such a way that it will be able to withstand the challenges of an expansion project that is not yet finished." Without the constitution, an expanded EU may find it impossible to get anything done. "This, too, is true: As great as the historical merits of the EU may be, Europe still hasn't found its shape for the 21st century."

The Financial Times Deutschland isn't sure if the constitution is Beowulf or broccoli. "The people are afraid. Europe is being taken seriously as a threat, and Brussels is the bogeyman. The EU constitution is merely the coincidental, perhaps tragic screen onto which these fears are being projected. To be honest, almost no one knows what it actually says." But, the paper argues, these fears might be alleviated through a bit more engagement: "A little more controversy would have been good for Germany." But the constitution's supporters haven't tried very hard to win the people over, but that doesn't mean there is actually a lot to be afraid of. "Whoever makes the effort to actually read a little bit of the text will notice that structures, simplify, and in some specific cases actually improve the EU. It's too bad the Germans haven't gotten that."

The business daily Handelsblatt tries to fit in as many metaphors as it can in a front page editorial on the topic. The words 'historic' and 'a signal for the referendum in France' will get thrown around a lot after the constitution passes, "but even an overwhelming majority in parliament can't conceal the fact: Even European poster-child Germany is getting tired. Many would like to shift the European train down a gear or two." The EU project stemmed mainly from a desire for peace, and having achieved that, may find it difficult to continue selling itself. "Today, neither history nor Russia threatens us. Therefore, the EU constitution arrives a few years too late. It's actually a part of the foundation of a functioning European house, but its ratification is coming at a time that makes it strike many Germans as something more akin to building on a luxury addition." There is a message that the Germans are sending, but it's not the one the headlines will refer to. "This is the real message the Germans are sending to the French: The EU constitution is the last chance to achieve a deeper level of integration in the EU. If this attempt should fail, the chance at a similar reform will hardly be possible again, not even in Germany."