Berlin Peter Altmaier sat two rows behind the Chancellor in the official gallery. Before the constituent session of the Bundestag on Tuesday, the Federal Minister of Economics from the CDU posted a humorous tweet: “Good morning Germany! Today my membership in the Bundestag ends – after 27 good years. ”At the end he wrote:“ Thanks for the support and sorry for mistakes. Do it well & better! Thx! ”
But the longer the 736 newly elected men and women debated in plenary and elected the Bundestag Presidium, the more Altmaier seemed to mourn his years as a parliamentarian, if his facial expression was interpreted correctly. You didn’t see the jovial Saarlander laughing much.
In any case, it was a parliamentary session of farewells, but also of a new beginning. Just because of the many young parliamentarians. But before that, the FDP honorary chairman, Hermann Otto Solms, said: He was happy and confident. The former SPD candidate for Chancellor Martin Schulz thanked him for the “many fulfilled years” in parliament.
Union parliamentary group leader Ralph Brinkhaus stated that one still had to practice the role of the opposition. And CDU boss Armin Laschet seemed a bit lost among the MPs. One was particularly excited about the speech by Wolfgang Schäuble, who was replaced by the SPD woman Bärbel Bas in the office of President of the Bundestag.
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In his speech as senior president, he called for an urgent reform of the electoral law. With a view to the so far largest Bundestag in terms of members, he said that no political force should evade a reform to downsize. A sentence that was primarily aimed at its own Union faction, which had previously resisted a leaner parliament. The CDU politician, who will be a simple member of the Bundestag in the future, pleaded for a self-confident parliament that should “seek the dispute in the middle of society”.
The SPD politician replaces the CDU man as President of the Bundestag.
(Photo: Reuters)
No political side should claim to be right alone. In the end, the MPs applauded the parliamentary grand seigneur while standing – the AfD also managed to do so after initial hesitation. “Please don’t get me too moved,” Schäuble exclaimed.
Merkel no longer makes any decisions as head of government
Another farewell in installments could be observed. According to the Bundestag’s rules of procedure, the Chancellor would theoretically have the right to sit with the governing government in the plenary hall. But Angela Merkel (CDU) took a seat in the official gallery between Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and the former President of the Bundestag Rita Süssmuth (CDU).
A process with great symbolism. On this day, Angela Merkel is not only not a member of parliament for the first time in 31 years. Since Tuesday she has only been in office as executive chancellor. The greatest possible political restraint now applies to her and her cabinet. The government no longer makes any decisions that bind the new government.
Merkel remained true to herself even during these hours. She watched the plenary session without much external emotion. Nobody will ever know what incident she once jokingly exchanged with the Federal President. In any case, Steinmeier handed the Chancellor and the members of the Federal Government their discharge certificates in the afternoon.
The Chancellor and her ministers no longer make any decisions that bind the new government.
(Photo: Reuters)
However, he asked Merkel to continue government business until a new chancellor was elected. A request that Merkel complies with. At the weekend, the Chancellor is flying to Rome for the G20 summit. A week later she is expected at the world climate conference in Glasgow.
First the third woman in the office of President of the Bundestag
Shortly after 1 p.m., Wolfgang Schäuble announced the first real turning point on this day: “Madam President, please take over the office.” Health politician Bärbel Bas had previously been elected as the new President of the Bundestag with 576 of 732 votes – and the SPD won as the strongest parliamentary group took over the direction of the Bundestag presidium.
Olaf Scholz (SPD), who soon wants to be elected Chancellor in the Bundestag, obviously liked to keep the bouquets of flowers that were given to Bas by the well-wishers. Actually, SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich was considered set for the office. But when the 53-year-old from Duisburg sits on the raised seat at the head of Parliament, she quickly makes it clear that she wants to look ahead.
She praises Schäuble’s work, but at the same time emphasizes that she is only the third woman in this position. Before her, Annemarie Renger (SPD) was parliamentary speakers from 1972 to 1976 and Rita Süssmuth (CDU) from 1988 to 1998. Bas gets applause from all sides when she declares her commitment to fair parliamentary work. After a short pause, she adds what many in the parliamentary groups then understand as an allusion to the AfD: “We are not here to fight each other personally. But let me also say: hatred and agitation are not opinions. ”
That something is changing was also evident in the election of the Vice-Presidents of the Bundestag. The candidates Aydan Özoguz (SPD), Yvonne Magwas (CDU), Claudia Roth (Greens) and Petra Pau (Left Party) as well as Wolfgang Kubicki (FDP) received clear majorities. With Bas there are now five women and one man in the Bundestag Presidium. The candidate of the AfD, Michael Kaufmann, clearly missed the required vote.
More: New generation in the Bundestag: How young MPs deal with their new power and responsibility