Olaf Scholz is solid and pragmatic in the pandemic debate in the Bundestag. But Corona is more than a medical issue. In order to solve the problems in the country as Chancellor, he has to deliver greater things.
Olaf Scholz is still there, that’s good to know. In the past few weeks since the election, the future chancellor has hardly been seen, now he has declared himself in the Bundestag. And at the same time, perhaps involuntarily, given an outlook on what one can expect from a Prime Minister Scholz – and what not.
Sure, a corona debate is not a government statement. Nevertheless, others in his position would have probably used the opportunity to draw a wider range. To explain how the country wants to deal with Corona in the long term: how the growing cracks in this society that have arisen around vaccination should be puttied. And how much restriction of freedom is justified as a price for more security.
Scholz avoided these big, difficult questions during his appearance. Not a word about the social tension in the country, no idea how to solve the problem of a lack of nursing staff in the long term. Instead, he focused on what should happen now: 3 G at work, more 2 G in leisure time, free tests for everyone, a federal-state summit to discuss the details. It wasn’t brave, it wasn’t visionary, but it was solid and pragmatic.
There is nothing wrong with that. Doing what needs to be done and exuding calm at the same time are qualities that are valued in this country. It is not for nothing that Angela Merkel ruled here for 16 years. Nevertheless, Scholz should not underestimate how much Germany needs a vision for the future. An idea that will advance this country. And that, perhaps most importantly, can bring supposedly irreconcilable groups of society closer together again. Because Corona is not only a medical problem, it also threatens really bitter long-term consequences for social cohesion in the country. Pragmatism alone is not enough to solve this problem.