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Economics Minister Peter Altmaier on the way to the press conference where he presented his climate charter
Photo: Odd Andersen / dpa
Peter Altmaier walks into the conference room panting.
"I have to acclimate myself a little first," he says in a flat voice.
Ironically, at the appointment this Friday - one of his more important as Federal Minister of Economics - the CDU politician is ten minutes late.
Without taking a deep breath, he starts to speak, Altmaier's tone is getting stronger: "I propose to make an attempt to establish a broad, parliamentary consensus on the central issues of climate protection," he says.
The fight against global warming and for a booming economy - for the minister these are now "Siamese twins", he says.
He suggests 20 points: among other things, climate protection as a national goal, for which a fixed percentage of the gross domestic product is to be invested, in clearly defined annual steps.
Not even the Chancellor knew the details
Peter Altmaier has plans.
One to save the climate.
A second to support his party in the 2021 federal elections.
And a third, so that even after the era of Chancellor Angela Merkel, to whom he owes his rise, to continue to be at the forefront of politics.
A strategy to make the country climate neutral by 2050 fits in every way.
In the SPIEGEL interview, he explains his ideas.
Altmaier wrote down his climate plan himself, without his officials, without experts.
At the press conference, he said he had "finalized his proposals at night".
The economics minister's plan was to surprise political friends and foes alike.
If he had agreed, his plan would have "leaked" beforehand, says Altmaier.
Therefore, he himself only told the Chancellor that he wanted to drop a stone into the water this Friday.
Altmaier wants above all to take the Greens by surprise, whom he sees as apparently the greatest competitor in the middle-class camp.
And the competitor reacts less than two hours later.
"Climate protection means doing, not announcing," said party leader Annalena Baerbock to SPIEGEL.
Baerbock did not fall into the trap of turning down the economics minister's offer and thereby falling into the role of environmental brakeman.
"We support every step that implements the Paris climate protection agreement and are ready to offer advice and action, but not for diversionary maneuvers," she says.
It sounds similar with Cem Özdemir: "It is always good when there are opportunities to talk. At the moment there is simply no belief in seriousness."
The Greens are relaxed
From the perspective of the Greens, Altmaier's initiative repeats a well-known pattern: the grand coalition has announced climate protection, but falls far short of the expectations of civil society - and the Greens themselves.
Baerbock reminds of the coal phase-out and the climate protection law.
In front of both, the Greens feared the loss of votes and poorer poll results.
The coal compromise then dragged on, the climate protection law was sharply criticized, not only by the opposition.
But if the grand coalition actually decided on effective climate protection, the Greens would find themselves in a quandary.
What could you say against one of your core concerns being enforced?
On the other hand, they would lose their most effective campaign topic.
"It seems bizarre when the Minister of Economic Affairs, of all people, gives the big climate protector."
Oliver Krischer, energy expert for the Greens
The Greens do not want to admit that Altmaier has made major strategic plans.
"The announcement of a charter seems more like the economics minister's helpless attempt to not always be perceived as a problem when it comes to climate protection," said the energy expert of the Green parliamentary group, Oliver Krischer, to SPIEGEL.
Altmaier has so far "attracted attention mainly because he works against climate protection".
"It seems bizarre when the Minister of Economic Affairs, of all people, gives the big climate protector."
Altmaier wants to bring back bourgeois voices from the Greens
Altmaier will take the scolding calmly.
Especially when the green party strategists actually believe that he acted without calculation.
Because he has, as he revealed to SPIEGEL.
In it he explains that the Union has too little competence in environmental issues among voters.
However, he considers the climate to be the dominant theme for the coming decades. For him, Fridays for Future is the largest political movement since the peace movement.
If it took the Green votes away, that would be good for the CDU in many ways.
It would extend the lead in the federal election in 2021.
Weaker Greens would possibly slip from second to third place behind the SPD.
This would thwart a conceivable green-red-red government option in the federal government - and the way would be free for a black-green alliance.
Many in the CDU would have preferred that after the last election - especially Peter Altmaier.
If necessary, the FDP would have to be the third partner if the votes are not enough for a two-party alliance with the Greens.
Even Altmaier's internal party critics are full of praise
It is noticeable how praiseworthy his party friends are about Altmaier's climate initiative.
They had attacked him violently last year because of his industrial strategy.
Too state interventionist, it was said at the time.
Precisely this judgment could also be obtained with a number of the proposals on the climate: transformation plans, annual plans, a house of the energy transition.
For market-liberal Union people, this could sound as if the Minister of Economics had succumbed to socialism.
Not to mention the exorbitant cost of the plan.
But the economic wing of the Union seems to have understood what Altmaier is up to.
Even his otherwise worst critics are full of praise: "The proposal can be an important step towards creating a balance between climate protection and the competitiveness of the economy," said the conservative CDU economic expert Joachim Pfeiffer to SPIEGEL.
Andreas Jung from Baden-Württemberg, more of a climate campaigner in the CDU, agreed with him: "It is good that Peter Altmaier, as Minister of Economic Affairs, is now taking the initiative, because technological leadership is a question of survival for the German economy."
The coalition partner is angry
The mood of the current coalition partner SPD is completely different.
Superficially because Altmaier did not inform them and in the past few years he has never really stood out as a great environmental friend.
The SPD environmental expert Matthias Miersch told SPIEGEL that Altmaier's approach was "unbelievable, implausible and quite brazen".
The Minister of Economic Affairs is "cordially invited to give up the constant resistance and to properly promote the expansion of renewable energies with us".
Altmaier's social democratic cabinet colleague, Environment Minister Svenja Schulze, expressed a similar opinion.
Altmaier's paper addresses a core area of her department.
"I am happy about the tailwind for climate protection," said Schulze and criticized that she would have liked to have received it earlier from the Minister of Economic Affairs.
Incidentally, the Paris Climate Agreement is "the best climate charter I know".
Schulze's mocking undertone suggests that she suspects Altmaier's calculation of trying to steal an issue from the other parties.
The political consequences of Altmaier's initiative can also be seen in the reaction of the FDP.
Since the clumsy remarks by their party chairman Christian Lindner on Fridays for Future (climate protection is "a matter for professionals"), the liberals have had a real void on the subject.
Lindner is therefore a little offended by the minister's offer.
Altmaier brought up the conversation, "which we have considered necessary for a long time. Over a year ago we called for a national climate consensus," Lindner told SPIEGEL.
The decisions would have to "last longer than one legislative period".
But one is asking how seriously the offer is meant.
"However, we reject a climate pact that is only supposed to create an agreement between the CDU, CSU and the Greens," says Lindner.
His concern should be fairly justified.
Because there is more room for Peter Altmaier in a black-green coalition than in a Jamaica coalition.
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