Thursday June 10, 2021
Despite failure in Saxony-Anhalt
Scholz: “Everything is included” in the election for the SPD
The SPD suffered a severe defeat in the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt. Nevertheless, Chancellor candidate Olaf Scholz is optimistic about “Maischberger” that he will be able to turn things around until the federal election in September. The SPD politician also commented on the mask dispute.
Despite the low polls and their poor results in the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt, Finance Minister Olaf Scholz does not consider the SPD to be left behind in the federal election campaign. “Everything is in there, and we will try to move it forward together,” said the SPD candidate for chancellor on the ARD program “Maischberger. Die Woche”. Past elections have shown how the distribution of votes could change significantly at very short notice, emphasized Scholz.
In the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt, the SPD slipped 8.4 percent to a new low in the state. Nationwide, the party recently remained in the polls, the Greens and Union recently achieved significantly higher approval ratings. Scholz said: “The results for the parties that lie ahead of us are not well over 30 percent or 40 percent of all that has ever existed.” They are on a scale in which large and decisive changes are still possible, he said with a view to a potential catch-up by the SPD.
The SPD candidate for chancellor also commented on the mask dispute – in contrast to the SPD leadership, however, much more cautiously: Despite repeated requests, Scholz avoided a clear demand for Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn to resign from the CDU. “I say that there are now questions to be answered,” said the Federal Minister of Finance about the dispute over the distribution of allegedly less tested corona protective masks. There had previously been sharp attacks from the SPD leadership with specific calls for the health minister to resign.
Scholz stands behind Minister of Labor Heil
The background to the debate, which is burdening the black-red coalition, is a “Spiegel” report on the handling of allegedly inferior corona masks ordered in China. According to plans by the Ministry of Health, masks that have not been tested to high standards should go to facilities for people with disabilities or for the homeless. After an intervention by the SPD-led Ministry of Labor, this was refrained from. Spahn had rejected the allegations.
The health minister had shown disappointment from the coalition partner through the public debate and said that partners apologize if they got lost. In this case, however, that is not to be expected. Scholz now said that he saw no reason for an apology and supported Federal Labor Minister Hubertus Heil from the SPD. He made sure that in every case it was ensured that only masks corresponding to the correct standards were distributed. “I think that has to be said explicitly, because the Minister of Labor did the right thing.”
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