The state elections in Saxony and Thuringia have triggered a political earthquake. AfD and BSW triumphed and pose major challenges to the formation of a government. In the talk show ‘Hart aber fair’, Louis Klamroth and his guests discussed the consequences for Germany.
After the AfD became the strongest force in a state election on Sunday, the party, which is classified as right-wing extremist, is seeking government responsibility: “It will be difficult without us,” stressed Beatrix von Storch, deputy chairwoman of the AfD parliamentary group, in the talk show “Hart aber fair” on Monday. “A clear majority in Saxony and Thuringia has called for a grand coalition between the AfD and the CDU, but this has failed because of the CDU’s firewalls,” said von Storch. “Now they should just deal with it.”
The economy also has to come to terms with this bad news: “What the East needs politically to generate growth is not what the AfD is demanding,” explained economist Veronika Grimm on the topic “Triumph for AfD and BSW: How are these elections changing the country?” Skilled workers are needed in the new chip factories in the East. But “they won’t come if they’re afraid for their well-being,” she said, referring to justified concerns on the part of companies. This includes the AfD’s critical attitude towards the EU, which could “bring about a collapse of the German economy.”
Beatrix von Storch thinks the traffic light coalition is worse than Brexit
As a member of the independent Council of Economic Experts, Grimm sat opposite Beatrix von Storch in the first block of the show. And the AfD politician naturally represented a different position than the “economic expert” – who, according to von Storch, was “presumably close to the CDU”: Economic challenges such as the shortage of skilled workers were “home-made problems, and no one believes that the AfD is the cause,” she rejected Klamroth’s accusation that she was “scaring away skilled workers.”
“The highly qualified people we need are not coming and the ones we get, we don’t need,” she said, criticizing the federal government’s initiatives in Nigeria and supposedly “empty phrases” as well as campaigns such as “Made in Germany. Made by diversity.” She also rejected Grimm’s criticism of the AfD’s demand to leave the EU. The traffic light policy is worse than Brexit, she said, and it is destroying the German energy industry and industry.
“That’s not true,” Grimm contradicted. Brexit was a “massive mistake.” For Germany, which is much more closely integrated into the EU, a similar isolation from the EU would be a “catastrophe.”
“If nothing changes, the AfD will be at 40 or 50 percent in five years”
None of the guests used the word “catastrophe” in the second block of the talk show. But it could have been on the tip of one or the other’s tongue: After all, Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD), Thorsten Frei (First Parliamentary Secretary of the CDU parliamentary group), BSW General Secretary Christian Leye, Markus Feldenkirchen (capital journalist “Der Spiegel”), podcaster and writer Hendrik Bolz and Jana Hensel from “Die Zeit” discussed coalition options and the significance of the elections for the traffic light government.
The results in Saxony and Thuringia were just “another step in a worrying development,” the latter analyzed. Like her, podcaster Bolz did not want to speak of a turning point (“The term is becoming outdated”), but pointed out that five years ago the AfD was only narrowly prevented from becoming the strongest force in Thuringia. “If nothing changes, the AfD will have 40 or 50 percent in five years,” he said, hoping that this time the warning shot “was understood on a large stage.”
The chance of this happening is “zero point zero”, said Markus Feldenkirchen (capital city journalist “Der Spiegel”), who said the federal parties are only “whitewashing and justifying”.
“When the money was gone, the unity was gone too”
Both of these things were also discussed in the broadcast: Klamroth cited studies saying that every second CDU voter in Saxony only voted for the party to prevent the AfD from having too much influence. Thorsten Frei did not see this as a “poor reflection” on the CDU: the election was primarily focused on federal political issues such as migration, and the CDU politician did not want to play a “blame game” against the traffic light coalition, but later did so anyway.
“We have a significant share in this,” said Health Minister Lauterbach, not even attempting to downplay any responsibility for this “difficult and dismaying result, which I feel sorry for both countries.” He received applause for this admission.
What did Lauterbach “smoke from his legal plants on the balcony again”?
The AfD had already grown under the CDU. “During your time in government, the AfD grew by 10 percent,” said Hensel, bringing figures into play. The fact that Lauterbach had recently praised Olaf Scholz in an interview (nevertheless) as the “best chancellor” was not only met with surprise by the “Zeit” author. He thought: “What has he been smoking from his now legal plants on the balcony again?” Feldenkirchen got a laugh on his side.
The journalist immediately became serious about Scholz’s lack of qualifications: “Holding together two or three parties that have a worldview and view of humanity that do not fit well together has clearly not been successful,” Feldenkirchen judged. He described the decision of the Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe as a turning point: “When the money was gone, the unity was gone too.”
“People want to see success,” said Frei, taking the opportunity to criticize the traffic light coalition’s migration and economic policies. “Lauterbach is moaning next to me,” said Klamroth, giving the health minister an opportunity to respond: “We are doing a lot and to make it seem as if we are not achieving anything is not right,” he said, referring to overcoming inflation and dependence on Russian gas.
Louis Klamroth listens up: “You hope that people will leave the party?”
“What we are seeing between Frei and Lauterbach is not going down well,” said Christian Leye (BSW Secretary General) interrupting the exchange. It is not a question of whether the previous or current government is to blame. “21 percent of the population is threatened by poverty, while the top of society is celebrating a game to which they are not invited,” he said, speaking of people’s problems. “Real wages are at the level of 2016. People are feeling the effects of eight lost years.” And instead of offering solutions, a marital dispute is taking place in the open.
“You will soon have the pleasure or the burden of government responsibility to deal with the issues,” said Klamroth, speaking of coalition possibilities. The CDU’s decision not to work with either the Left Party or the AfD made it “extremely difficult to form a government,” Hensel pointed out.
“So how are you doing in Thuringia?” Klamroth wanted to know. “Today it’s 44 to 44, but who says it will stay that way?” Frei did not want to commit himself. “Are you hoping that people will leave the party?” the moderator became curious. Leye would also be interested to know whether there were defectors: “As far as I know, nothing is happening,” he said. “Discussions are being held,” Frei replied. “Now I have to ask again: are you trying to hold talks with left-wing MPs to get them to move over to the BSW?” Klamroth did not let up. “We are not holding them,” Leye happily joined in the banter.
Thorsten Frei (CDU): “We will not sacrifice our foreign and security policy on the altar”
This came to an abrupt end with a “no” from Frei. While he continued to rule out a coalition with the Left, cooperation with the BSW would not be a “desired constellation” either. Above all, “letting the BSW dictate our security policy from offstage” was out of the question, he promised, “not to change our foreign and security policy and not to sacrifice it on the altar.”
An equally clear statement came from BSW politician Leye: “For us, this is a central point,” he stressed, “two thirds reject the stationing of medium-range missiles, probably even more in the East. Perhaps it is a good idea to take the will of the voters seriously.”
What a coalition in Thuringia might look like in view of these discrepancies was just one of the many questions to which Louis Klamroth could not find an answer on Monday.
Those: teleschau – the media service GmbH
