There are sentences that politicians say again and again. For Lars Klingbeil it's the one with the excavators. Either they have to roll or they finally roll - financed with billions in loans from the federal government for infrastructure and climate protection. This week the Finance Minister is traveling to construction sites where his money is being spent. The guest gift: a small, yellow excavator.
It's a promotional tour - and it takes Klingbeil across the country: to a kindergarten in Bruchsal, a multi-purpose hall in Graben-Neudorf, a town hall construction site with still wet spray plaster in Billigheim, to a half-finished library in Mainz, today to a clinic in Göttingen, a comprehensive school in Hildesheim. “Germany invests here” is written on banners and safety helmets. The SPD leader wants to “show where good things are happening in our country”. The goal: For people to once again associate the federal government with positive news. But this seems like a battle against windmills.
The argument does not fit the message
Because while the Vice Chancellor is presenting his yellow excavators, the coalition is arguing about nursing care reform at the beginning of the week. “Whenever I’m in the car, I’m allowed to make a phone call,” reports Klingbeil during a public conversation with a slightly annoyed undertone. The argument doesn't fit the message he actually wants to send. Even if it becomes clear the next day that the Union and the SPD have somehow reached a compromise, there can be no question of silent government work.
Immediately afterwards, the second bad news: The Chancellery stopped Klingbeil's draft for a sugar tax. It is a public rebuke that could hardly be clearer - and which makes it clear to everyone at home: In the coalition, both sides are now more careful than ever not to accommodate their partner too far.
Klingbeil actually wants to report on something that works. The SPD leader had thrown a lot of political weight into the balance so that the nascent coalition decided on a huge, debt-financed special pot before Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) took office. The federal government is taking out loans of over 500 billion euros to renovate infrastructure, promote climate protection and also stimulate the economy over 12 years.
He was scolded from many quarters for this, and for a long time nothing was visible. But now the finance minister can proudly present the first projects. “We are now building the Germany of the future,” he says. There has been money for a year; according to figures from the Ministry of Finance, almost 57 billion euros, or more than 10 percent of the total funds, have flowed out. Leading economic research institutes assume that the billions will make a significant contribution to stabilizing the economy.
The money is flowing
Locally, people are full of praise: “This special fund is actually an excellent example of excellent cooperation between the federal, state and local governments. “You can say that,” says the Finance Minister of Rhineland-Palatinate, Doris Ahnen (SPD). The mayor of Graben-Neudorf, Christian Eheim (also SPD), is pleased about the unbureaucratic funding. The renovation of the multi-purpose hall, where Klingbeil throws a few balls when he visits, cost 9.5 million. 6 million come from the special fund. That's why there is now money available in the town to build a new elementary school.
“You wouldn’t believe how happy I am that I can now finally see the places where things are moving, where something is actually happening, where the construction sites are, where the excavators are now rolling,” says the Finance Minister. The message goes to the coalition partner Union, where many continue to have stomach ache with the special fund because of the high debts. And it goes to your own party: If we co-govern, we can achieve something.
Coalition looks into the abyss
Because the mood in the coalition is at a low point after the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt, Berlin and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Merz is fighting for his authority as chancellor, Klingbeil for the party chairmanship. Both are trying to gain points in government. For Merz, this means sticking to the reform course - for Klingbeil, subjecting all planned reforms to a social and justice check.
What remains to the outside world is a government that is not pulling together. The fuss over a beach chair belonging to State Minister Philipp Amthor (CDU) in the Chancellery is still the smallest problem. The conflict over pension reform will probably come back with force, as will the unresolved dispute over Klingbeil's tax reforms. The sugar tax is now on hold. Even if Klingbeil tones down his draft, it will probably not pass through the Bundestag quietly. Several Union politicians have fundamental concerns. And if things get really bad, the finance minister's budget could blow up in his face.
Against this background, Klingbeil must feel a bit like Sisyphus on his promotional tour, with the stone constantly rolling down the mountain. “We are in day-to-day business, but we also have to create interest in a better future,” he said in a public discussion in Heidelberg. “The truth is: we’re not doing that right now.”
