Juso boss attacks Scholz
“The hut is burning out there”
December 9, 2023, 12:54 p.m
The newly elected Juso leader Philipp Türmer sharply attacks the Federal Chancellor in his response to Olaf Scholz’s keynote speech. At the federal party conference, Türmer accused the head of government of only acting as a “moderator of power”. Queues at the table are “an indictment of social democracy.”
At a federal party conference of the SPD that was characterized by great unity, the newly elected head of the SPD youth organization Jusos, Philipp Türmer, who was elected just a few weeks ago, blew up the mood. “Olaf, if you want to go on the defensive, you have to play on the attack,” said Türmer, referring to the SPD’s poor poll numbers and state election defeats. People wanted the Chancellor to show empathy, explain and make decisions, “not a moderator of power.” The federal government should not “fool people”.
Türmer accused Scholz of not showing enough leadership to the outside world and instead acting as a “couple therapist” for Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner from the FDP and the Green Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck. “Olaf, you once said that whoever orders a tour should get it,” said Türmer. “I hereby order it and we are urgently waiting for delivery.”
Little applause for Turmer
“People stand in front of food bank queues with cold feet,” said Türmer. This is a “demonstration of poverty for the social democracy,” said the Juso boss. “The hut is burning out there.” The debate about the budget crisis is becoming increasingly perfidious at the expense of the poorest. The crisis would not be solved even if the party stood up three times during the Chancellor’s speech.
Scholz’s speech was met with long applause. In it he preached a course of confidence and promised a solution to the budget dispute in the traffic light that would not be at the expense of the welfare state. The chairmen Saskia Esken and Lars Klingbeil as well as Secretary General Kevin Kühnert were also celebrated on Friday and received large majorities in their re-election. The applause for Türmer during his counter-speech, however, was sparse.
The day before, the Jusos had received a lot of support: They managed to push through two changes to the key motion entitled “Together for Germany” that was passed on Friday afternoon. The demand for a reform of the debt brake now leaves scope for its complete abolition, at least that is the interpretation of the Jusos. The approximately 600 delegates also voted against a proposal from the SPD leadership to introduce a kind of “future solidarity contribution” for top earners in the future. Instead, the lead proposal now calls for a one-off tax on the assets of the super-rich, the amount and implementation of which are not defined in more detail.