Frank-Walter Steinmeier's second election as Federal President went as smoothly as his first.

Again he was elected on the first ballot, again by an overwhelming majority.

That was no surprise.

The governing parties had spoken out in favor of Steinmeier, and the Union also acknowledged his "high domestic political recognition" and "particular foreign policy competence".

That must ring in Schröder's ears

The Federal President surprised himself that day – with the speech he gave.

His condemnation of Russia's aggression against Ukraine and his words addressed directly to Putin could not have been clearer.

Steinmeier, who as foreign minister clearly showed understanding for Moscow's arguments, has never been heard like this before.

Even his former boss Schröder must have this speech ringing in his ears for days.

With his speech, which was not only combative in this passage, Steinmeier could also have eased the pain of those in the Union camp who had wanted their own candidate, if only as a matter of principle.

Above all, the CDU was so exhausted and self-absorbed that they decided against sending their own candidate in the ultimately hopeless race against the popular Steinmeier.

The Union should then have found a reason why it no longer wants a president for whom it voted in 2017, even if it was out of embarrassment at the time.

He holds up the mirror to the agitators

Admittedly, some in the Union camp think, not entirely wrongly, that Steinmeier's social democratic origins shine through every now and then.

But only in the ranks of the AfD was there a member of parliament who insulted him as a "splitter and agitator" and "the worst federal president of all time".

That was the tit-for-tat for Steinmeier holding up a mirror to the actual haters and agitators in parliament, on the streets and on the Internet, which then inevitably shows drooling faces.

Anyone who sees the will to split in Steinmeier will certainly also consider Putin to be an angel of peace.

Steinmeier considers it one of his most important tasks to counteract the centrifugal forces in politics and society.

He has expressed his concern about the radicalization of the dispute in Germany and the fading of history's lessons so often that the impact of his speeches threatens to diminish among those who should be listening particularly well.

Not everyone is a jerk

Steinmeier's benevolent critics, on the other hand, are still hoping for a sentence that could hang over his presidency, such as the "Day of Liberation" over von Weizsäcker's, the "jerk" over Herzog's or "Islam is now also part of Germany" over Wulff's short term in office .

A Federal President who wants to make the citizens think about things that have not yet been heard is walking a fine line, as not only the last-mentioned example shows.

Not everyone is a jerk.

The Basic Law also does not require the Federal President to be some kind of political sole entertainer.

It is not the head of state who is responsible for the “boom” in German politics, but the Federal Chancellor.

In the constitutional structure, the Federal President stands for a view of the big picture, for impartiality and for stability – which is never a matter of course.

Two resignations and discussions about the dignity of the office revealed that even at the top, the state can face shocks.

Not only be admonishers, but also understanders

Steinmeier is only the fifth of twelve Federal Presidents to serve a second term.

She is the more difficult one.

Steinmeier cannot and does not want to completely reinvent itself.

Luckily, government (education) crises like in 2017, when he had to remind the SPD of their state-political responsibility, don't happen often.

So what's left for him?

To provide services that should not be underestimated, especially not in times of a pandemic: having an open ear for the needs and fears of the citizens, encouraging, building bridges, being the voice of the unheard and the silent, including those who are no longer feel represented by the parties.

The people should not only be able to recognize the admonisher in their Federal President, but also the understander.

In their plan to rebuild the republic, the SPD and the Greens are so fixated on all kinds of minorities that they lose sight of what's on the minds of the many citizens who think they don't need minority protection, but meanwhile majority protection.

The Federal President must also and especially be the President of these citizens.

The traffic light coalition will often have to be reminded of the golden rule of measure and middle.

Who would be called upon to do this if not the Federal President?