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The chairman of the Bundestag parliamentary group interrupted an interview with the television host Phönix on the sidelines of the party congress in Kalkar. The reporter asked him about the AfD’s social policy.
The president of the AfD parliamentary group, Alice Weidel, let a reporter from the television station “Phoenix” stand in the middle of a live interview. The reporter asked Weidel on Saturday on the sidelines of the AfD federal party conference in Kalkar, North Rhine-Westphalia, the following question: “Social policy, the AfD does not agree on that, should it be more liberal? economically, more socially patriotic, they call it, others? They say to go social-nationalist direction? “
The dispute over the concept of the welfare state has long divided the AfD. Alice Weidel apparently does not want to answer the question of which concept will prevail at the party’s federal conference. pic.twitter.com/X3ggSEKTta
– phoenix (@phoenix_de) November 28, 2020
Weidel replied, “What please, in which direction?” The reporter replied that he had only quoted a newspaper article without adopting its content. Anyway, turn down the kind of question, Weidel said. “That’s outrageous,” she added, before finally cutting off the interview and storming out without a greeting.
Weidel, who is a member of the AfD federal executive board, had walked out of a round of talks ahead of the 2017 federal elections after being upset by the course of the conversation.
Meuthen, head of the AfD: No “Crown dictatorship” in Germany
Earlier, AfD president Jörg Meuthen had asked his party members to clearly distance themselves from the rioters and provocateurs in their own ranks. In the face of brazen visitors to the Bundestag invited by AfD members, he warned at the party’s federal conference in Kalkar: “We will not achieve more success by appearing more and more aggressive, more and more rude and more and more uninhibited.
Since these incidents also had a deterrent effect on many AfD voters, it was wrong to show solidarity with party members who “fell into the role of provocateurs,” Meuthen said.
The federal government’s policy in the crown pandemic and the performance of Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) are inappropriate “and certainly not proportionate.” This must also be criticized in clear words. “But is it really accurate to speak of a ‘Crown dictatorship’?” Meuthen asked the more than 500 delegates in the room.
“We do not live in a dictatorship, otherwise we could hardly hold this party congress today,” Meuthen added. Not only did he receive applause for his speech, but he was also booed by some of the delegates.
Chrupalla attacks the federal government
AfD President Tino Chrupalla opened the party congress in Kalkar with an attack on the federal government’s crown policy. He accused the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) of following a “policy of pure bankruptcy”. Stocks would be destroyed, the wave of bankruptcies is already underway, the course of the pandemic will cost many people their jobs.
AfD party conference in Kalkar: Public order office employees verify compliance with mask requirement. (Source: Wolfgang Rattay / Reuters)
Chrupalla defended that the AfD is holding a two-day presence party conference in the corona pandemic. Such presence party conferences are essential in a democracy, he said. “If we let a virus put us in our place, democracy has already been lost.” At the same time, Chrupalla appealed to around 600 delegates to adhere to the concept of hygiene. “Wear your masks, keep your distance,” he said. Delegates “must not damage the congress with careless behavior.”
There was strong criticism at the big event at the fairgrounds amid the corona pandemic. A permanent mask requirement applies to delegates. The AfD was unsuccessful with a lawsuit against this requirement. The public order office wants to verify if the officially approved hygiene concept is implemented. The city of Kalkar has announced that it will otherwise cancel the party conference.
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