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CDU, CSU and the new SPD spike: Who shrugs first

2019-12-01T15:47:27.438Z


The Union is shocked by the outcome of the membership decision with the coalition partner - but strives for emphatically sober reactions: The potential break of GroKo should bring about the new SPD bosses.



The already low popularity of membership decisions or even primeval elections in the Union parties has probably decreased significantly since the early Saturday evening again. But that's it on this first Advent even with new certainties at CDU and CSU.

That the Social Democrats - or a good quarter of them, more SPD members were not voting for Saskia Esken and Norbert Walter-Borjans - nominated the anti-GroKo duo for the party leadership, brings at the end of a politically already quite turbulent year even more everything mixed-up. Correspondingly large is the shock in the Union leadership. The Grand Coalition, which is clear to the leaders of the CDU and CSU, is now really up for grabs. After the SPD party congress next week, where Esken and Walter-Borjans still have to be formally elected, it could even end pretty quickly with the GroKo.

Or maybe not?

If Esken and Walter-Borjans do not want to disappoint their supporters, they would have to lead the SPD out of the grand coalition as fast as possible. They have campaigned against the Alliance, their clear supporters, the SPD youth organization Jusos with Kevin Kühnert at the top, have always been against the Alliance. But how exactly should a break in the coalition actually be accomplished technically? Is that even in the power of the designated SPD duo?

Questions that may well be the two now. In addition: The entire establishment of the party they should have it against them - and even Juso CEO Kühnert sounded last significantly less GroKo-critical than in the past.

The message: Business as usual

So this is the mixed situation in which the CDU and CSU leaders on Saturday evening in a telephone conference after the first shock initially agreed not to do anything. In view of the unclear situation, this is an inference based on common sense - but also tactical. If the coalition clashed, so the consideration in the Union, should be responsible alone, the SPD alone. CDU and CSU already have problems enough, because one wants to be perceived by the citizens at least as the last state-supporting force of the country.

Correspondingly meaningless to defensive, the reactions of leading Union politicians sound since the defeat of the second applicant duo Klara Geywitz / Olaf Scholz is established. One had hoped for the Pro-GroKo candidates, above all because of Scholz, the Vice Chancellor and Minister of Finance. But now you call like CDU Secretary General Paul Ziemiak even the victorious duo friendly words. "We look forward to a trusting cooperation for the benefit of our country," said Ziemiak on Saturday night.

CDU party leader and defense minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer went on Sunday on a long-planned multi-day trip abroad - this is also to be understood as a sign, the unrest not to further fuel. "We stand on the basis of this coalition that has been negotiated," said Kramp-Karrenbauer on her first stop in the Croatian town of Split. The decision of the SPD base clears the way to return to the field of work. At CSU General Secretary Markus Blume this sounded like this: "For us, nothing has changed on the basis of our cooperation," he told the "Bild am Sonntag".

Business as usual: That should be the message - even if everything could soon be different.

In the video: The Grand Coalition is shaking

Video

MIRROR ONLINE

One thing, however, is important to the Union leadership: the coalition agreement will not be shaken. On this line, it was agreed in the telephone conference on Saturday evening, several CDU leaders and CSU Secretary General flowers emphasized that publicly on Sunday. This is a crucial point, as the designated SPD chairpersons have made changes to the coalition agreement a condition to even consider continuing the Alliance.

How it goes on, should be clearer after the SPD party congress next week. Esken and Walter-Borjans, when formally in office, want delegates to decide on the continuation of the coalition on the basis of substantive issues. The party congress must decide which substantive points could wait and which are so urgent, "that we therefore also ask the coalition question".

After the SPD party congress will continue to be discussed in the Union

The governing bodies of the CDU and CSU are on Monday to advise on whatever the Social Democrats have decided at their party congress in Berlin, on Tuesday in ten days, the parliamentary factions of the Union and SPD meet for their next meetings, already in the middle of the week it could to give a coalition committee on the future of the Alliance.

If then Olaf Scholz still sitting at the table? A lot depends on his person. For the Union and especially head of government Angela Merkel remains the vice-chancellor and finance minister after his defeat for the SPD presidency, the contact person for the Social Democrats. Scholz, with his surprising candidacy, has put everything on one card, even a man with such Prussian pronounced sense of duty would now be trusted that he throws out everything after this swatter.

In any case, without Scholz, the biggest GroKo fans in the Union would soon lose the desire for further cooperation with the SPD.

Source: spiegel

All news articles on 2019-12-01

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