He has a few enemies, and some friends don't mean well either: CSU Vice Weber has trouble on his leg.
It's about fat extra income and contacts with right-wing populists.
Or is it more about paying old bills?
Munich – So far, 2023 has been, in short, a messed-up year for Manfred Weber.
Party friends publicly criticized his contacts with Italy's right-wing populists, his chairmen of the CDU and CSU distanced themselves.
There were objections when he brought up fresh top candidates for 2024.
And he himself has been accused since February of secretly receiving an extra salary of over 100,000 euros as leader of the European Conservatives (EPP).
All of this was extensively covered by the media.
"Last warning" is the headline in Der
Spiegel
, for example , and sees "a massive loss of authority".
Manfred Weber: Over 100,000 euros extra salary?
In fact, something is brewing over the 50-year-old Niederbayern.
The most difficult thing is the money.
It is legally possible for a party leader to be paid for his position, but this is rare in German politics.
Der Spiegel
reports 9,000 euros net per month
.
At a kind of EPP party conference, this was mentioned in abstract terms at the end of 2022, you can listen to a recording.
Nobody got it publicly.
Allegedly, CDU leader Friedrich Merz Weber has meanwhile asked to clear things up quickly.
What the Lower Bavarian does not intend to do.
He argues with a triple role as a member of parliament, group leader in the European Parliament and the EPP party chairmanship.
Overall, he considers the salary to be reasonable;
other faction leaders - also in Bavaria and in the federal government - get a high surcharge on the diets instead.
It is striking that the matter has now gotten out, reinforced by indiscretions from all meetings of the EPP, CDU and CSU where Weber was an issue.
Obviously, critics with different motives are involved.
Manfred Weber criticized for being close to right-wing populists
Weber has the greatest substantive annoyance in his own group because of his meetings with the Italian head of government Giorgia Meloni from the post-fascist party "Brothers of Italy".
A taboo?
A sign that you will soon be cuddling with AfD or Le Pen?
No, Weber recently told our newspaper.
“Italy belongs to the core of Europe.
It must be possible to talk to the government if it wants to work constructively in Europe.” He sees that Meloni has so far taken a middle course and has continued to win important regional elections.
The
FAZ
recently described their line as "pragmatic core conservatism".
His German party leaders Merz and Markus Söder, on the other hand, want (that used to be different) an uncompromising demarcation to the right.
You don't trust Meloni.
Social politicians from the EPP are also angry about the meetings.
Criticism of Weber can be read remarkably often from the Bochum CDU MEP Dennis Radtke.
First about the approach to Italy, now also about the extra salary.
A curious constellation, because Radtke, in turn, was one of the big Söder opponents in the K question in 2021.
Manfred Weber gets "unhappily caught between several fronts" - tense relationship with Söder
Weber was "unfortunately caught between several fronts," according to the CSU.
This also applies to personal details.
In an interview, he recently brought up the Maltese EU Parliament President Roberta Metsola (44) as an option for the top conservative candidate in the 2024 European elections.
You can see that as an affront to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (64), who snatched the job from Weber in 2019.
The CDU politician has not yet disclosed her plans.
Weber is familiar with the criticism of her work in parts of Europe.
Merz, however, immediately emphasized that von der Leyen could not be shaken.
Söder also stands by her.
At Merz, that's party discipline and the concern that a green commissioner would come instead of von der Leyen.
He has nothing against Weber.
At Söder, there is also the fact that his relationship with Lower Bavaria is considered tense.
Since JU times.
And even more so when articles whispered that Weber, who was very popular at grassroots level, could take over his inheritance in the event of a bad state election.
It doesn't look like much at the moment - but both have kept that in the back of their minds.
Since then, the two gentlemen, who have fundamentally different political styles, have not publicly said anything negative about each other.
But there is also no word of support for the party friend from Söder.