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When CDU Chancellor candidate Armin Laschet visited the flood area in mid-July, he laughed during a speech by Federal President Steinmeier: The misstep cost him a lot of sympathy points. Now it became known what amused Laschet so much.
This while Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier addressed the flood victims in a speech.
Imago
134 people fell victim to the flood. The damage ran into billions.
Rolf Vennenbernd / dpa
When the CDU chairman Armin Laschet visited the flood areas in the Ahr valley in July, he made a momentous faux pas.
His laughter during a speech by Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier was interpreted as disrespectful and cost him a lot of sympathy.
Now the reason for Laschet’s outburst of amusement became known.
It was to be a turning point in the election campaign of the future German chancellor candidate Armin Laschet: When, during a visit by high-ranking politicians in the flooded areas on July 17th, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier spoke into the cameras of the reporters present, it was clearly visible in the background like Laschet had a fit of exhilaration and burst into laughter from a group of colleagues.
His behavior was then sharply criticized, and the polls of the CDU, which had been the leader until then, collapsed as a result. The fact that Laschet immediately apologized for his behavior did not change that.
For a long time it was puzzled what had amused Laschet so much. As «Focus» reports, the reason has now become known. Bystanders told the editorial network Germany and the “Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger” the trigger for the laughing attack.
Accordingly, the Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia had teased his party colleague Frank Rock that he had only addressed the Federal President with “Mr. Steinmeier” instead of his title. Rock countered that he was just surprised that the Federal President is “as small as you”. Furthermore, the contortions of the reporters present, who stuck their microphones forward and tried not to get into the cameras, are said to have caused amusement.
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