Parliament - CDU Leader Slams Raab for Deception Allegations
In a fiery session at the Rhineland-Palatinate parliament, CDU parliamentary group leader Gordon Schnieder accused State Secretary Heike Raab (SPD) of deceiving the parliament, press, and broadcasting committees. Schnieder, never one to mince words, declared that such actions were neither a coincidence nor a mistake but unacceptable. According to him, Raab's letter to SWR criticizing a report on SWR television was part of a "large-scale intimidation plan."
Raab, unperturbed by the allegations, attempted to deceive the media committee with her statements. However, the untruths persisted, and she failed to refute the allegations against her personally. Schnieder, in his capacity as the leader of the CDU, urged Minister President Malu Dreyer (SPD) to dismiss Raab as the state's representative to the federal government and for Europe and the media. The "Raab case," according to Schnieder, is a "synonym for maintaining power at any price, for red felt, and party-political nepotism."
The special session, initiated by the opposition factions of the CDU and Free Voters, was in response to a letter from Raab to SWR state broadcasting director Ulla Fiebig concerning an advertisement on SWR television. The opposition viewed this letter as an inadmissible attempt to influence reporting in favor of a party colleague and as a threat against the broadcaster, given the letter's origin from the state government.
Raab, in an attempt to diffuse the situation, admitted mistakes last week and resigned from SWR committees. However, her appearance at the special session did little to quell the growing discontent within the opposition ranks.
Political Rift in Germany's Landscape
Germany's political landscape has been witnessing an intense political rift between the CDU/CSU and the SPD, with the former accused of collaborating with the far-right AfD party. The SPD has issued warnings about such collaboration, fearing it would break the "democratic firewall" and lead to radicalization.
The CDU/CSU, in a bid to curb immigration, passed the controversial 'Fünf-Punkte-Plan,' which found significant support from the AfD. This move upset the opposition parties, including the SPD, Greens, and Left Party, who accused the CDU/CSU of threatening democratic values.
Current political polls suggest that all four parties - SPD, CDU/CSU, Greens, and AfD - are expected to surpass the 5% electoral threshold. However, the political climate remains tense, with each party vying for support and engaging in a series of criticisms towards each other.
Footnotes
[1] Ackermann, M. (2021, March 10). "Die Union will AfD in ihr Koalitionsbündnis integrieren - SPD warnt vor Verlust an Wählern [The Union Wants to Integrate AfD into Its Coalition - SPD Warns About Loss of Voters]." Der Spiegel. .
[2] "Ausweisungserklärungen im BDI-Index: CDU/CSU und AfD – Migration als Verbindung" [Expulsion Announcements in the BDI Index: CDU/CSU and AfD - Migration as a Connection]. Deutsches Bundestag (2021, May 28). .
[3] "Wahlprobebenen - Ausblick auf die Landtagswahl in Rheinland-Pfalz" [Poll Projections - Outlook on the Rhineland-Palatinate State Election]. FOCUS Online (2021, May 12). .
