Outside the music is booming from the carousel, inside there are currywurst, SPD flags in beer mugs and standing applause for Lars Klingbeil. The federal chairman of the SPD has just finished his speech around eight in the evening in the beer tent at the Truderinger Festival Week – and a few minutes later the announced storm arrives in the east of Munich. Klingbeil talked about “politics in serious times” for a good half hour. Markus Rinderspacher, member of the state parliament, had previously announced him as the man who, as Secretary General, had succeeded in “getting the SPD together and on course”, so that they have since the strongest force in the Bundestag elections.
“Actually, I can only do it badly after such an introduction,” Klingbeil then began. He as a North German at a beer tent speech – whether that could go well at all? His team assured him that he wasn’t funny and that he didn’t belong here. The comrades present and SPD sympathizers see things a little differently, for example when Klingbeil reveals the secret of the federal election campaign. He had a great helper in Markus Söder, he says, who “kicked Armin Laschet in the shin every day”.
And so to the next election campaign, the early phase of which the Social Democrats are ringing in here in the marquee this evening. “We’ve been in opposition for long enough,” Rinderspacher said, adding that next year’s goal is to assume government responsibility. And Klingbeil starts attacking Söder again, who regularly gives the impression that politics is “only about the big headline”, about power and a showdown. But politics is “not a jungle camp, not a feature film”. After the mask deals, the CSU should be “deselected, it’s a scandal, you can’t forgive and forget that”.
When it comes to the Ukraine war, the green traffic light coalition partner also gets a taunt. The Greens are suddenly “the greatest weapons experts”, but in addition to arms deliveries, talks about peace are also needed. Klingbeil calls Putin a “war criminal” and says he must not win this war. However, the impression should not be given that the war will be decided on the battlefield instead of at the negotiating table.
The party leader then goes through the other crises that determine the “serious times” – pandemic, inflation, climate crisis – before he is presented with a red soccer ball by Claudia Thousand, member of the Bundestag in Munich. Not everyone may have known that Klingbeil from Lower Saxony is an FC Bayern fan and has been a member of the club’s administrative advisory board since March.
Later in the evening, a dozen young people dance to “Greek Wine” and “Dancing Queen” on the beer benches. Despite the serious times, it is also time to celebrate this evening.