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An interview about the coalition’s dispute over the radio license has far-reaching consequences for the CDU head of country, Stahlknecht: after losing his post as interior minister, he now also wants to resign the party presidency.
After his dismissal as Minister of the Interior of Saxony-Anhalt, Holger Stahlknecht has also announced his resignation from the position of president of state of the CDU. He wanted to avoid harm to his party, the function, his family and himself, he said in a personal statement.
He will resign on Tuesday “from the office of the chairman of the state party of the CDU Saxony-Anhalt,” Stahlknecht said after discussions with the state executive of the CDU.
Interview deepens the crisis of the coalition
Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff had fired Stahlknecht after a controversial interview. The main reason for this is that Stahlknecht publicly raised the breakdown of the coalition and the possibility of a minority government of the CDU in an uncoordinated manner during the ongoing efforts to stabilize the coalition with the SPD and the Greens, the state chancellery announced.
The relationship of trust with Stahlknecht was so disturbed that he could no longer belong to the state government. The head of government continues to pursue the goal of leading a government that is capable of acting in all respects and has a reliable majority in the crown pandemic, he said.
An increase in the license fee causes controversy
The cause of the dispute is the planned increase in the radio license fee by 86 cents to 18.36 euros per month. This requires the approval of all 16 state parliaments. In the coalition agreement, a “contribution stability” is stipulated for the broadcast license fee. The SPD and the Greens also see this as a given with the increase. “The 86 cents more a month does not even make up for the inflation rate,” the president of the state of Los Verdes, Sebastian Striegel, told the publishing network in Germany.
Parts of the CDU and AfD parliamentary group are strictly against the increase. If the CDU strengthens its position with the help of the AfD, the SPD and the Greens want to leave the coalition. The project shows a collaboration with the AfD, which the three coalition partners had excluded.
“Develop interpretations against intention”
Stahlknecht now declared that, as president of the state, he had “given the current and unequivocal decision-making process of my party and, as a member of the group, the opinion of my group.” This had been made necessary due to the “unfounded claim” that his party was seeking a rapprochement with the AfD. He also appealed to the coalition partners not to allow such a move “and to think of all the threatening consequences.” The form and content of the interview were correct for the party and for him, but “the interpretations were developed against the intention”.
In an interview with the “Magdeburger Volksstimme”, the 56-year-old coach had not only ruled out that his party would move away from his no to an increase in contributions, but also criticized the image of East Germany on public broadcasters and reports with he “raised the index finger of” justified “moralization. At the same time, he had announced that should the coalition break with a minority CDU government, it would continue until regular state elections in June 2021. Prime Minister Haseloff it has always categorically excluded a minority government, as well as a reliance on AfD votes.
Kramp-Karrenbauer sees coalition partners as an obligation
The leader of the CDU, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, called on the coalition to guarantee stable conditions. “I hope that all the responsible forces in Saxony-Anhalt will work together with the prime minister to ensure political stability,” said the federal president of the dpa news agency. Haseloff made the appropriate suggestions. Earlier in the week, the head of government drafted a proposal with the state chancellery to avoid a vote in the state parliament. As a result, the increase may not go into effect on January 1 as planned. The SPD and the Greens had refused.
Kramp-Karrenbauer still sees the duty of the coalition partners after the proposal: “The decision now rests in particular with the SPD and the Greens, who must become aware of their political responsibility.” The federal greens asked the federal CDU to intervene. “I am very hopeful that the CDU still has some kind of regulatory influence in the federal government so that the CDU in Saxony-Anhalt remains in the middle and does not drift to the right,” said Federal Director General Michael Kellner, the ” Handelsblatt “.
Laschet strengthens Haseloff’s back
Haseloff’s colleague from North Rhine-Westphalia, Armin Laschet, was confident that Haseloff’s demarcation of the AfD applies. He had “the solidarity and support of the entire German CDU for his course,” said the CDU federal presidential candidate of the dpa. “The course in the middle was and still is the correct one.” There are times when a clear stance is required.
Stahlknecht has been interior minister since 2011, he has been regional head of the CDU since 2018, and for years he was considered the successor to Prime Minister Haseloff. The incumbent frustrated this ambition just a few weeks ago and announced that he would run for a third term as the CDU’s top candidate.
