Scholz defends end of German “traffic light” coalition
Published: Wednesday, Nov 13th 2024, 15:30
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German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) has defended the dismissal of his Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) in the Bundestag and the resulting end of the traffic light coalition. "This decision was the right one, and it was unavoidable," he said in his government statement.
He welcomed the fact that an agreement had now been reached on a date for the new election on February 23. He was "very grateful for this". He called on the Christian Democrats to pass important laws together before the dissolution of the Bundestag. "Where we are united, let us also act united. It would be good for our country," he said.
Scholz names list of possible resolutions
Specifically, Scholz mentioned relief from the so-called cold progression in income tax, which should apply from January 1, 2025. It is also necessary to adopt as much of the planned government initiative for more growth as quickly as possible. An increase in child benefit should also come at the beginning of 2025. The Chancellor also mentioned amendments to the Basic Law to make the Federal Constitutional Law more resistant to possible political interference.
No to Taurus reaffirmed
Scholz once again defended his stance on the Ukraine conflict and reiterated that Ukraine would not receive any Taurus missiles with a range of 500 kilometers for the defensive campaign against Ukraine. "I will not change my position regarding the delivery of a cruise missile from Germany."
Söder in the Bundestag for the first time - Habeck misses debate
In the debate on the government statement "on the current situation" planned for two hours, CSU leader Markus Söder will also speak for the first time as Bavarian Minister President and therefore a member of the Bundesrat. Party leader and designated candidate for chancellor Alice Weidel will speak on behalf of the AfD.
Only the Greens are unable to send their likely candidate for chancellor to the debate. Due to a breakdown of the government plane in Portugal, Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) missed the government statement. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is now to speak in his place, according to the Green parliamentary group. Also on the list of speakers: Former Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP), who was fired by Scholz.
Final point under dirty "traffic light" divorce
The debate marks the end of the messy divorce of the "traffic light" coalition (SPD, FDP, Greens) after almost three years of marriage of convenience. Following a bitter dispute over economic and financial policy, Scholz fired his finance minister a week ago and brought about the end of the three-party alliance. He now leads a minority government of SPD and Greens and wants to put a vote of confidence to the Bundestag on December 16. If, as expected, he does not receive a majority, a new election will be held on February 23. Until then, 102 days remain for the election campaign. The government declaration was more or less the prelude to this.
Starting position for the election campaign: CDU/CSU clearly ahead
It looks like a clear case for the CDU/CSU. It has been achieving a stable 30 percent or more in the polls for a year now. The SPD, the strongest governing party, is currently in third place with 16 to 18 percentage points - behind the right-wing populist AfD.
But be careful: it was no different before the 2021 election. Two and a half months before the election date, Scholz and the SPD were still up to 16 percentage points behind the CDU/CSU. On September 26, the SPD finally won against the CDU/CSU with 25.7 to 24.1 percent. Scholz became "traffic light" chancellor.
The SPD is now taking heart from the tale of its 2021 triumph - and hoping Merz will make mistakes. And the others? As things stand, the Greens can expect 11 to 12 percent. The FDP is scratching at the 5% hurdle in the polls, while the Left Party is clearly below it. The Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) could make it into the Bundestag with current figures of 5 to 9 percent and the AfD is number 2 with 15 to 19.5 percent.
Four candidates for chancellor for the first time
For the first time, there will be four candidates for chancellor in an election campaign. The CDU and CSU were the first to decide on Friedrich Merz (CDU), head of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group - and surprisingly quietly. The Greens want to choose Economics Minister Robert Habeck as their candidate for Chancellor at their party conference this weekend. And the AfD executive committee wants to send party leader Alice Weidel into the race on December 7.
Only in the case of incumbent Chancellor Scholz is it still not clear when he can officially call himself the candidate for chancellor. The party leadership asserts that he undoubtedly will be. However, in its first meeting after the coalition's exit on Monday, the executive committee refrained from formally nominating him - and thus allowed the debate within the party to continue as to whether he is the right candidate.
Pistorius as a replacement candidate for Scholz?
There is a promising alternative: Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has been the undisputed number one in the charts of the most popular German politicians for months. Some in the party think that he is the only way to catch up with the CDU/CSU. So far, however, only some in the third and fourth tiers have dared to say this.
But even the very loyal parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich registers the unrest - and talks about it. "Yes, there is grumbling. Of course there are also these voices," said Mützenich on Tuesday evening on ZDF's "heute journal" about the doubts about Scholz. Ultimately, however, the party knows that it can only win together, he added. When asked whether this would happen with Olaf Scholz, Mützenich replied: "I am firmly convinced of that."
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