Political legend attacks Merz head-on in TV show

No time? blue News summarizes for you

• FDP leader Wolfgang Kubicki continues to clearly reject coalitions or direct cooperation with the AfD.
• However, he criticizes the so-called firewall and calls for a stronger political debate with the party.
• Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz accuses Kubicki of poor expectation management and a lack of understanding of political processes.

Summary created with

Wolfgang Kubicki has already achieved one thing. Since he became the new captain of the FDP, the party has seen an increase in membership. He had actually not wanted to continue after Christian Lindner retired from politics. But: "I feel fit, and I think that a 74-year-old can challenge a 70-year-old," said the new FDP leader on Tuesday evening on Sandra Maischberger's Ersten show.

By the 70-year-old, Kubicki is referring to Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz, with whom Kubicki has recently had many a battle of words. On "Maischberger", the liberal adds. "The management of expectations is subterranean," Kubicki says of the Chancellor. He probably no longer knows "how the game works, i.e. how the system works".

Kubicki attacks Merz: "Expectation management is underground"

Kubicki now has to prove that he understands the "game" better. He wants to lead the FDP back into the Bundestag. "I wanted to quit, but Christian Dürr asked me to stay on, they need me. And that flattered my vanity."

Kubicki explains that the FDP has recently lost all elections dramatically and in some cases trailed behind the Animal Protection Party. That annoyed him. After all, he had been an FDP member for 55 years. He could not remain calm. "I said to myself, now mobilize the rest of your strength to give the party a future. I am not the future of the FDP, but the party needs a future."

"We didn't clap with the AfD"

Heidi Reichinnek and Jens Spahn argue on "Maischberger"

Kubicki admits that he was annoyed with his party colleague Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann when she stood as a candidate at the FDP party conference at short notice. "I would normally expect that if someone decides the night before, they would at least say in the morning, Wolfgang, I've decided to run. Then I would have said, great, and I could have changed my speech. Because our principle is: introductory speeches have ten minutes and everything else can come later." Kubicki cannot believe that Strack-Zimmermann only decided to run on the day of the election. "But that doesn't matter now, the battle has been fought."

Shift to the right in the FDP? "There is no evidence of this at all"

The new FDP leader has to contend with opponents in his party; his election as FDP leader has caused concern among some that the Liberals are now moving to the right towards the AfD. Kubicki rejects this. "There is absolutely no evidence, no indication that this is actually the case. And then you shouldn't speculate with such narratives."

Nevertheless, the fears of the FDP shifting to the right are not entirely unfounded. After all, some high-ranking party members are close to the "R21" think tank, which is considered to be right-wing conservative. Among other things, it is calling for an end to the firewall to the AfD.

Kubicki takes a similar view: "If democratic parties come up with the idea of no longer submitting proposals themselves because the AfD agrees, they make themselves look small and are no longer taken seriously by people." He continued: "If we don't seek discussion and debate, then we shouldn't be surprised that the AfD gets bigger and we get weaker as a result of our refusal to engage in debate."

Wolfgang Kubicki rejects direct cooperation with the AfD

He could also imagine submitting motions that would only find a majority with the votes of the AfD. However, Kubicki rejects the idea of drafting joint motions, cooperation or even a coalition with the AfD. "I can't form a coalition with people who have the exact opposite view of humanity to liberals. I cannot form a coalition with people who want to leave the European Union because they believe we are big enough on our own. I can't form a coalition with people who want to jeopardize our security by leaving NATO and don't even understand that this makes us vulnerable."

Kubicki was once one of the left-wing liberals in the FDP. Today he calls himself "liberal". His party's place would be in the center if it were to be re-elected to the Bundestag. "Where we want to be again," Kubicki affirms.

At the next elections. Whether Kubicki will still be party leader then, he does not know. "If the Lord wills and I live", then he probably will. "And if he recalls me before then, he'll need a new generation."