Lauterbach's declaration of war: lost health minister

Created: 05/10/2022 04:54

By: Sebastian Horsch

Sebastian Horsch, political editor at Münchner Merkur, comments on the statements made by Health Minister Karl Lauterbach on the war in Ukraine.

© Wolfgang Kumm/dpa/Klaus Haag

As Minister of Health, Karl Lauterbach commented on the war in Ukraine on Twitter, thereby torpedoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz's efforts to keep Germany and NATO out of the war.

A comment by Sebastian Horsch.

Karl Lauterbach was again on Twitter a lot over the long weekend.

The Federal Minister of Health, who is said to be so factually oriented, churns out serious political assessments with such ease that it takes your breath away.

The applause Lauterbach receives on Twitter seems to spur him on

The applause Lauterbach receives from parts of the online network seems to spur him on.

And in fact, as Minister of Health, it is his right to comment on the high number of infections at the Munich Wiesn in a way that attracts the public.

Who, if not him, has to point this out.

This applies even if his view that all festival visitors should have been obliged to take a corona test would probably hardly stand up to a feasibility check.

Lauterbach's conclusion that the federal states shouldn't wait much longer to make masks compulsory indoors is at least debatable - but as a specialist minister he is undoubtedly on his own territory.

But what on earth drives the health minister to be the first member of the federal government to declare war on Putin?

For months, Chancellor Olaf Scholz has been doing a diplomatic egg dance so as not to draw Germany – and thus NATO – directly into the conflict, despite a wide range of support measures for Ukraine.

Lauterbach, on the other hand, is either prepared to question this principle for a few thousand Twitter likes – or he is not even aware of the importance of his choice of words as a German minister.

One wonders what would be worse.

Sebastian Horsch