Lindner in the ARD summer interview: “For us, content counts”

If FDP leader Lindner has his way, he will become finance minister in a black-yellow coalition after the federal election. in the ARD summer interview Lindner made no secret of his skepticism about traffic lights.

According to his own statement, FDP leader Christian Lindner assumes that the next federal government will again be led by the Union. “As I expected, it has already been clarified who will move into the Chancellery,” said Lindner in the ARD summer interview. “I see it as almost certain that the government education mandate will go to the CDU.” The still open question is who will take on important roles within the government.

Lindner confirms interest in the Ministry of Finance

In this context, Lindner renewed its willingness to take over the office of Federal Minister of Finance. The question is, “should it be a Robert Habeck from the Greens – he wants to loosen the debt brake, he wants to increase taxes, he only has an orientation towards public investments – or should it be a minister of the FDP?” He was ready to take over the office, so Lindner: “With the respect for the debt brake” and the conviction that no taxes should be increased in the high tax country Germany. “Now people can judge what they think is the better solution for the country.”

With a view to coalition options after the federal election, Lindner let it be known that he clearly preferred a two-party alliance between the Union and the FDP. When asked about the possibility of a traffic light coalition between the Greens, the SPD and the Liberals, Lindner said: “That is a fictional scenario.” He does not see that there are arithmetically or in terms of political content enough similarities for a traffic light alliance: “I lack the imagination which content-related offer Annalena Baerbock could make to the FDP that would be more attractive than the offers made by the woman four years ago Merkel did. ” Here people could rely on the FDP just as they did four years ago: “For us, it is content that counts, not positions and careers.”

Regardless of this, the liberals are ready to take on government responsibility, said the party leader. “The tasks that lie ahead of us in the coming years are enormous,” says Lindner. It is about coping with climate change and transforming the economy and society. “Our free way of life, prosperity and jobs must be preserved.” The humility before these tasks is great, but at the same time he is willing to accept these challenges.

“Interested in a traffic light discussion”

“We have not yet decided in terms of coalition policy how we will go into this election campaign,” explained Lindner. All three Chancellor candidates – Green top candidate Baerbock, CDU candidate Armin Laschet and Olaf Scholz from the SPD – have an interest in a traffic light discussion. “Ms. Baerbock, because: She wants to stay in the game. Mr. Scholz, because: This is the only way he stays in the game. And the CDU, because: With the fear of the traffic lights and an alleged shift to the left, they want to campaign against the FDP.” The crucial question is 60 days before the election: “Black-Green or Jamaica?”

The political scientist Andrea Römmele stated after the interview that she had clearly heard a no to a traffic light coalition from Lindner’s statements. “Black-yellow is the clear desire coalition,” said Römmele tagesschau24. At the same time, Lindner is blinking in the direction of Jamaica: Such an alliance between the Union, the Greens and the FDP are clearer for the Liberals under Chancellor Laschet than four years ago under Angela Merkel.

Make climate change “more economical”

In the important political topics – climate and pension policy, coping with the consequences of the corona and reconstruction after the flood disaster – Lindner made an effort in the ARD summer interview to sharpen the liberal profile of his party.

When asked about climate protection and the targeted traffic turnaround in Germany, Lindner disagreed with the statement that the FDP was sticking to the combustion engine. The FDP has “no preference for any kind of drive,” said the party leader. “We say we want to have a fixed CO2 limit in our country, but how this budget, which is strictly limited, is distributed, we would like to decide on the basis of the market economy, that should be in consumer sovereignty.” This will make climate change more economical. In this context, Lindner also emphasized the importance of so-called eco fuels, i.e. synthetic fuels: In this way, the combustion engine can be operated in a climate-neutral manner.

Political scientist Römmele sees this as Lindner’s clear commitment to the election program of the FDP, which stands for the unleashing of the economy. “Mr. Lindner made it very clear that climate change and environmental policy can only take place on the basis of a healthy economy,” said Römmele at tagesschau24. At the same time, there have long been discussions in society as a whole that “only rethinking climate change ultimately means long-term prosperity”.