From the protection of the constitution to persona non grata: after several verbal gaffes, the CDU presidium unanimously gave ex-president for the protection of the constitution, Hans-Georg Maassen, an ultimatum to leave the party. If he does not leave the CDU by Sunday (February 5) at 12 p.m., the party’s national executive should initiate an exclusion procedure “and withdraw his membership rights with immediate effect,” the CDU announced on Monday after deliberations in the party’s presidium.
Maassen had again come under massive criticism in the past few days for statements on Twitter and in an interview. In a tweet he claimed that the thrust of the “driving forces in the political and media space” was “eliminatory racism against whites”. In an interview, Maassen also spoke of a “red-green racial theory”.
Right-wing politicians and peace researchers: These CDU/CSU politicians were excluded
Also because of earlier controversial statements, Maassen has been a thorn in the side of some in the CDU for years. “Again and again he uses the language from the milieu of anti-Semites and conspiracy ideologues to ethnic expressions,” says the text now approved by the CDU presidium. He is constantly violating the principles and order of the party. “There is no place in our party for his statements and the ideas they express.” Maassen had to leave the party.
Maassen initially does not seem to want to comply with this request. “That is unwise from the party leadership, because the conditions for an exclusion procedure are not available,” he told the “Welt”. The 60-year-old defended his statements. “What I said is not racist, it’s what many people in the country think,” Maassen told the newspaper.
If an exclusion procedure were actually initiated against Maassen, he would not be the first politician in the Union to suffer this fate.
Sources: DPA news agency, German Bundestag, daily News, “mirror” (1), “mirror” (2), “mirror” (3), “taz”, “Daily Mirror”, fractionsprotocols.de, “Sueddeutsche Zeitung” (1), “Sueddeutsche Zeitung” (2), Federal Returning Officer, “Fulda Newspaper”, “Main Echo”“star”