“Maybrit Illner” – Dobrindt on Scholz: “It’s everyone else’s fault that his genius didn’t come to light”

Even before Chancellor Olaf Scholz failed in the vote of confidence, the election campaign was well underway – marked by insults, denunciations and sharp accusations. Terms like “Fritze”, “Mimosa” or “Tünkram” determine the debate: it’s about people, hardly about programs. While most parties have already presented their election plans, the AfD is not expected to present its program until after the party conference in mid-January.

In the last issue of the year of “Maybrit Illner”, SPD party leader Lars Klingbeil, Green Party leader Felix Banaszak and CSU regional group leader Alexander Dobrindt discussed how to handle the election campaign and the question: “Many ideas, little money – election campaign with expensive promises? They received support from the writer Juli Zeh and the journalist Helene Bubrowski, who shared their perspectives on the heated political situation.

Lars Klingbeil said about the harsh treatment between politicians: “It’s also part of the election campaign that the tone is getting tougher.” He was particularly harsh in his criticism of the CDU chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz, who “made up stories in the plenum” and made harsh accusations against Olaf Scholz. Klingbeil thinks that the SPD, on the other hand, relies on content: “Of course the pace is tougher, that’s part of it. But at the same time, running a high-content election campaign can be successful.”

“In other countries we treat each other in completely different ways”

One point of contention in the program was the question of self-criticism in politics. Green party leader Felix Banaszak criticized that many politicians lack “self-criticism and a culture of learning.” His party colleague and Green Party candidate for chancellor Robert Habeck did it differently and sought direct contact with citizens in order to find out their needs with his media-effective “kitchen table discussions”.

CSU politician Alexander Dobrindt then accused Chancellor Olaf Scholz of lacking self-criticism. His speech on the vote of confidence was “damned self-righteous,” said Dobrindt. Scholz blamed everyone else but himself. “It was the ignorance of everyone else that prevented his genius from coming to light,” he scoffed.

The writer Juli Zeh, herself a member of the SPD, also drew the group’s attention to media criticism. She complained about the “contempt for politicians” that was exemplified in the media. No matter what a politician does, it will be harshly criticized afterwards. This makes political work much more difficult: “Germany is exemplarily good; In other countries people treat each other and talk about each other in completely different ways.”

But the crisis of trust goes even deeper, emphasized Zeh: “Not only people who have migrated to the AfD, but also in the so-called center there are many who are no longer watching the election campaign.” There is a “retreat from the position that Politics can effectively shape the future.”

Dobrindt and Banaszak had a heated exchange of words. Dobrindt emphasized his party’s distance from the Greens: “I am completely unsuspected of being close to the Greens. “I don’t want to form a coalition with the Greens,” he said, referring to his party leader Markus Söder, who regularly voices opposition to a possible black-green coalition.

Banaszak countered sharply: “I also have an opinion about the CSU. But it may not be about you and Markus Söder, but about what is happening in this country.” He warned against a radicalization of the political debate, as can be observed in the USA. In Germany, Democrats should not stop talking to each other, said the Green politician. The Greens are committed to climate protection, while the Union would like to “unwind” this, he accused Dobrindt.

Moderator Illner pointed out that the black-green coalition was working together successfully in several federal states. Dobrindt didn’t accept that: “But you’ve just seen that he doesn’t have the right insight to even come to a common policy,” he said of Banaszak.

Quail eggs and frog legs

All parties are promising financial relief in their election manifestos. Some of them differ greatly. The SPD is planning tax relief “for 95 percent” of citizens, which should amount to a total of 30 billion euros. The FDP is proposing relief of 138 billion euros, including through the abolition of the solidarity surcharge. The Greens are aiming for 48 billion euros in relief with climate money and other measures, while the Union is planning for 90 billion euros, including through a reduction in VAT in the catering industry.

The SPD wants to reduce the tax on food from seven to five percent. Klingbeil attacked Friedrich Merz directly in the discussion: “Friedrich Merz has dealt with the question of whether his favorite products are also included,” he said smugly, referring to Merz’s criticism of the SPD idea that it also included truffles and quail eggs and frog legs fell. “In my constituency you don’t even know where to buy something like that, it’s all about butter and milk.”

Banaszak saw the differences in the programs clearly: “The difference lies in who do you want to relieve, who do you have in mind.” He accused the Union of saying that the richest ten percent of the population would benefit most from their relief plans. Dobrindt dismissed this as “fictional”.

Another focus of the discussion was climate protection. “Climate protection costs something. No climate protection costs anything,” Banaszak wanted to make clear. Climate protection and justice could be brought together, said the Green politician. “People with very high incomes can buy their way relatively easily from the consequences of global warming and drive from air-conditioned offices to air-conditioned homes in air-conditioned cars.”

Bubrowski warned against a discussion that was too simple: “It is dishonest if we only talk about who can be exonerated and where. Instead, there needs to be an honest conversation about who can carry what and how much.”

Klingbeil emphasized that the SPD is focusing on the “working middle”: “The hard-working, the decent people who work as nursing staff, educators, bus drivers or at the supermarket checkout. How can you relieve them?” Where the money should come from is also clear: “It has to come from people who earn a lot or have very high assets taking on more responsibility.”

Finally, Dobrindt addressed the policy change that the Union has chosen as its election campaign motto. Dobrindt made serious accusations against the Greens and the SPD: “For three years you were not ready for all the possible ideas that you are currently formulating.” The Union was ready to cooperate where it made sense, he emphasized. “But we won’t be able to overturn the rubble of the traffic lights on which you are now trying to organize your remaining politics.” His conclusion: “You can’t make a policy change in Germany like that.” Voters will decide on a possible policy change on February 23rd .