Scholz remains indebted for the most important answer

Scholz remains obligated for the most important answer

A little self-criticism still dares Bundeskanzler Scholz, as he is repeatedly asked about it. Otherwise, brief moments of rhetorical clarity follow many evasions in his summer press conference in Berlin. On the most important question, Scholz does not provide a clear answer.

"Just looking at the sun for a moment" - Bundeskanzler Olaf Scholz is particularly looking forward to this in his upcoming vacation, as he recently revealed in an interview. Before it all starts, Scholz must still face the questions of the Berlin journalists on this Wednesday afternoon. The sun shines during the summer press conference in Berlin from the sky - and Scholz' anticipation for his vacation could have risen.

However, in the traffic light coalition, there is anything but sunshine. Among the population, the impression is solidifying that there is only fighting in the Federal Government. Correspondingly gloomy are the survey values for the SPD, Greens, and FDP. The SPD is at 15 percent according to an RTL/ntv Trendbarometer survey, the Greens at 11 percent, and the FDP at five percent.

The poor approval ratings are now even causing doubts among SPD members about Scholz as their party's candidate for Chancellor in the upcoming elections. According to a Forsa survey, only one third of SPD members still see Scholz as the right Chancellor candidate of their party, with 33 percent expressing the same for Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, and eight percent for Co-Party Chairman Lars Klingbeil.

So the important question comes up at the beginning of the press conference: Why is Scholz still the right one for the Chancellor's office?

Scholz counters with a wink: "Thank you very much for the extremely nice and friendly question." With this, he creates laughter in the room right from the start. Scholz shows: He can be witty and quick-witted. Then he clarifies: "I will run for Chancellor again." However, then sentences like: "The SPD is a closed party." Or, a little later: "Survey results that are not good are a spur to achieve better survey results." These sentences, which Scholz could spare himself, create the impression: The most important question of this afternoon remains unanswered, as Scholz provides few reasons to make him the Chancellor candidate again.

Scholz: Overcome "Schlendrian" in migration policy

His talent for answering questions around the subject has sadly gained notoriety. There is even a verb for it in political Berlin: to scholz. Typical of the Federal Chancellor are also the endless enumerations of his government's achievements when asked to engage in self-criticism by journalists. It becomes tiring after a certain time, but unfortunately, it's a shame, because Scholz is right. Apart from the internal squabbles and communicative chaos, his government can present a quite decent balance sheet: The unemployment rate has been reduced under it, the support for Ukraine was quickly put into action after the Russian invasion, and then he managed to bring the exploding energy prices back under control - and much more. [

In Migrationspolitik ist "Schlendrian" überspielt worden.

Scholz' Kunst, Antworten umzuetänzeln, hat traurige Berühmtheit erlangt. Dafür gibt es im politischen Berlin sogar ein eigenes Verb: scholzen. Typisch für den Bundeskanzler sind auch die unendlichen Aufzählungen der Erfolge seiner Regierung, wenn er von Journalisten darum gebeten wird, Selbstkritik zu üben. Das wirkt nach einer gewissen Zeit ermüdend, ist aber eigentlich schade, denn Scholz hat recht. Ausserdem den internen Streitereien und dem kommunikativen Chaos kann seine Regierung eine recht ordentliche Bilanz abgeben: Die Arbeitslosenquote wurde unter ihr gesenkt, die Unterstützung der Ukraine wurde nach der russischen Invasion schnell auf die Beine gestellt, danach konnte sie die explodierenden Energiepreise wieder unter Kontrolle bringen - und vieles mehr.

Scholz: "Don't let the debate be determined by the sidelines"

Scholz struggled with some parts of the nearly two-hour press conference. It remains unclear why Scholz hopes for two legislative periods. Only after being asked about potential oversights of his government for the tenth time did Scholz show a minimal amount of self-criticism: He was glad to have overcome the "bottleneck" in migration policy that had ruled in the previous government. He meant the errors of the Grand Coalition under Angela Merkel, to which both the SPD and Scholz as vice chancellor belonged. In another place, Scholz admitted that this bottleneck had to be overcome in defense and labor policy as well. And: "The hardest part was the discussions, until we got there." Scholz is fully aware that something is off in the communication of this federal government. Unfortunately, he was unable to make it better during this afternoon.

There were also some strong moments of rhetorical clarity. For example, when Scholz describes how he once sat at a long table with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow and Putin showed no interest in proposals for arms control because "he had already prepared his war." Or when Scholz says it was a mistake to see the containment of illegal migration as an "unsolvable problem" - and describes how the federal government was able to increase returns by 30 percent. Or when he explains the reason for the polarization of society through "zero-sum thinking" of some people: "When something is given for one thing, then there's no money left for what's important to me." This thinking is not only senseless, but counterproductive.

Scholz: "Don't let the debate be set by the sidelines"

Scholz grappled with some parts again. This was particularly clear when he was asked about the Landrat of the Mittelsachsen district, Dirk Neubauer. Neubauer, a former SPD member and now non-partisan, announced on Tuesday that he was stepping down - due to threats "from the far-right fringe" and a lack of decision-making power in the structurally weak region. In response to the question of what he wanted to do against the political aimlessness in such regions, Scholz only replied that politics should come from the "chatterbox" and invest in the economy and social cohesion. But who is supposed to do that if politicians resign? "It's important that we don't let the tone of our debate be set by the sidelines" - but by those who set themselves apart party-wise for cooperation. To these sidelines belong, for Scholz, "the AfD and the FDP". A solution proposal looks different.

Little later, Scholz compares hate and hate speech on the net with situations in his everyday life: "Every day you stand among people and think to yourself: What did he have for lunch today?" Similarly, it is in social networks, you have to be resilient and calmly react. Scholz earned a few laughs again. But the real problem is not solved by this statement. After all, he has to convince as many of these people as possible to vote for him in the upcoming state elections - and not the "sidelines". Furthermore, not everyone can be as calm as Scholz, who is surrounded by bodyguards.

For this, he presents some proposals, announces plans for further economic initiatives, housing construction, and bureaucracy reduction. However, this alone may not be enough to pull the SPD in Thuringia and Saxony out of the polling slump, where they each hover in the single-digit range. Scholz will also have to measure himself against the results of these elections. If they turn out as disastrously as expected for his party, it will become increasingly difficult for Scholz to give reasons why he should be Chancellor again.

Despite the poor approval ratings of the coalition parties in the survey, SPD members still see Olaf Scholz as the right Chancellor candidate for their party in the Federal Elections 2025, with 33% expressing their support. However, this support is not enough to quell doubts among some members.

In his press conference, Scholz faces questions about why he should still be the Chancellor candidate. He counters with humor, stating that he will run again, while acknowledging the need for improvement in communication and self-criticism.

The SPD, alliance partner Alliance 90/The Greens, and FDP are all experiencing a decrease in survey values, with the SPD at 15%, the Greens at 11%, and the FDP at 5%. This decline could potentially impact their performance in the upcoming elections.