Seehofer recently labelled the migration issue "the mother of all problems" in German politics -- a comment read by many as a veiled reference to Merkel's nickname "Mutti", or Mummy

Angela Merkel's government on Tuesday removed domestic spy chief Hans-Georg Maassen from office, transferring him to a different post to defuse an explosive row over immigration and the far right that once more rocked the German chancellor's fragile coalition. The face-saving compromise lets Merkel’s fourth-term government live to see another day, after her Social Democratic coalition partners had insisted on Maassen’s departure as head of the BfV intelligence service, against the wishes of Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, who is from her Bavarian CSU sister party. Maassen became the focus of controversy earlier this month after raising doubts about the veracity of reports about far-right hooligans and neo-Nazis randomly attacking immigrants in the eastern city of Chemnitz in late August. FILE-- In this Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018 photo Hans-Georg Maassen, center, head of the German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, waits for the beginning of a hearing at the home affairs committee of the German federal parliament, Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany. Thousands attend anti-racism concert as Merkel urges Germans to speak out

Days after the unrest, Maassen questioned the authenticity of amateur video footage showing street violence and voiced doubt that racists had indeed “hunted down” foreigners – comments that directly contradicted Merkel, who had deplored the xenophobic attacks and “hatred in the streets”.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel removes Hans-Georg Maaßen from the position of President of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution after his remarks downplaying anti-migrant violence.