Scheuers fight
At 4.20 a.m. it was over, the questioning of the fifth witness in the toll investigation committee was over, it cannot be said that it made any significant contribution to the clarification of the matter.
Federal Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer contradicted the witnesses who had appeared earlier, the representatives of the consortium that should have operated the toll.
One of the central questions was: Did the operators offer the minister to sign the toll contracts only after the European Court of Justice (ECJ) had ruled on the legal validity of the toll?
The ECJ had declared the toll project illegal in June 2019, when the contracts had already been signed, the operators are now demanding at least 560 million euros in damages.
Would Scheuer have prevented the disaster if he had accepted the operator's offer?
Could he possibly have saved the taxpayer a lot of money?
Before the committee of inquiry, the operators repeatedly confirmed that they had made such an offer to the minister.
Scheuer and his state secretary responsible at the time said that they remembered that there was no such offer.
That night there was word against word, memory against memory, and in the end the sobering realization that even a committee of inquiry has its limits: there will probably not be any clarification on this central question.
Anyone who lied remains in the dark.
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Andreas Scheuer
Photo: Michael Kappeler / dpa
The House of 1000 Breakdowns: Why the Ministry of Transport has always made headlines.
Corona teachings
Politicians are sending two signals on the Corona issue.
One is that the number of infections is increasing, in some of our neighboring countries they are exploding, we are very concerned.
The other is: We want to prevent a second lockdown, the economy would hardly survive it, and also only with difficulty the state, which cannot loosen the billions without limits.
What shall we do?
My colleague Lydia Rosenfelder and my colleague Dirk Kurbjuweit asked people from politics and administration what their interim balance sheet of the corona crisis is, what they see as a mistake, what they would do differently today.
Astonishing insights have come together.
René Gottschalk, the head of the Frankfurt health department, thinks it is wrong that the government has imposed a lockdown on the entire country.
Instead, people should have worn masks from the start.
Now the infectiologist advocates protecting especially those who are at risk.
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Armin Laschet
Photo: ALESSANDRO DI MEO / EPA-EFE / Shutterstock
Armin Laschet, the North Rhine-Westphalian Prime Minister, has no problem admitting a mistake: he would not make the decision to close the schools today - because of the serious social consequences.
Gottfried Ludewig, who is responsible for digitization in the Ministry of Health, pleads for more "courage to be imperfect" after seven months of the corona crisis.
And Bodo Ramelow, the Prime Minister from Thuringia, calls for more protection against viruses in everyday life - for example via HEPA filters in the ventilation.
You can read the story of the first lessons from the corona crisis in the new SPIEGEL or here.
Also: We have been living with the corona virus for half a year.
How has people's attitudes towards the pandemic changed?
A cross-border survey provides surprising answers.
Unity birthday
Tomorrow, on Saturday, there will be no "Lage am Morgen", it is October 3rd, a public holiday.
The country is celebrating the 30th anniversary of German unification.
The central celebrations take place in Potsdam, with a service and a ceremony spoken by the Federal President.
The "Germany sings" campaign starts at 7 p.m., and it is said that "connecting songs" should be sung throughout the country.
I'm afraid the idea is more impressive than its implementation.
My colleague Janko Tietz wrote down a very personal look at 30 years of German unity.
He tells the story of his parents and their decision to leave home.
In March 1984 the family left the GDR and had to get used to life in the West very slowly.
I remember a sentence in Janko's text that sums up well all the difficulties that we as a society still have with unity: "In the West, I believe, no one ever understood that the political circumstances in the The East could reject or question and still see the country as his home. "
Our two lives: The tough fight for our exit.
Loser of the day ...
... is the spokesman for the Kremlin,
Dmitri Peskov
.
He reacted to the world-exclusive SPIEGEL conversation with the Russian opposition politician Alexej Navalny with crude theories.
Navalny had said that he suspected the Russian President Vladimir Putin was behind the attack on him with the neurotoxin Novichok.
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Dmitri Peskov
Photo: Pavel Golovkin / AP
Peskov said that Navalny was receiving instructions from the US CIA and that he was working closely with Western intelligence services.
The Kremlin also believes it is possible that these secret services poisoned Navalny so that Western governments can impose sanctions on Moscow.
Welcome to the realm of the conspirators.
"I claim that Putin was behind the act": The Navalny interview
Winner of the day ...
... could become the heads of state and government of the European Union if they succeed on the second day of their summit in making Europe grow closer together.
After they managed to bring about sanctions against the supporters of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko during the night, nothing spectacular is on the agenda today at first glance, no major world politics, no Navalny, no Belarus: It's about them Strengthening the EU internal market.
But there is a big idea behind it: If the European Union wants to grow closer together, it must do so in every area, including, of course, economic exchange.
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Ursula von der Leyen
Photo: FREDERICK FLORIN / AFP
There is already a well-functioning internal market for goods, but the situation is different for services, especially in the digital sector.
Its regulation has not yet been standardized, it is high time.
In view of the aggression from Russia, in view of the massive shifts in power in the USA, in view of the geopolitical changes brought about by China, every step that breaks down Europe's borders and strengthens the Union is the right one.
If new rules for the internal market are adopted today, it will be a good day for Europe.
Also: Dirty Divorce - EU Legal Action Against Great Britain
The latest news from the night
EU agrees on sanctions against Belarus:
Negotiations took place for weeks, but now Cyprus is refraining from a veto: the EU states have decided on sanctions against supporters of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.
Trump does not want any rule changes:
After the chaotic television debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden, the responsible commission had announced consequences.
But Trump sees himself as a winner - and is reluctant to tighten it.
EU abolishes compensation for train delays in the event of force majeure:
The EU has decided to reform the passenger rights of rail travelers.
Among other things, there should be no more compensation in the event of failures due to force majeure.
Criticism comes from the European Parliament.
The SPIEGEL + recommendations for today
Forget about corona aid: Two million micro-entrepreneurs are fighting for their existence
Podcast: Say What Is: How Safe Are Cruises?
Serious program instead of satire: "The Party" puts an end to fun
Parents' column: I no longer understand my child
I wish you a nice Friday and a relaxing weekend!
Your Martin Knobbe