FDP chief under fire as support slumps

At the centre of controversy is outspoken FDP Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, who has come under a barrage of criticism from his own party and Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU). Polls show support for the pro-business FDP has nearly halved since September’s election to about eight percent.

One former CDU cabinet minister, deriding Westerwelle’s description of unemployment benefits as reminiscent of Roman decadence, described him as an ass.

FDP supporters feel let down by a failure to deliver substantial tax cuts. Party credibility also took a hit when a 1.1 million euro donation from a hotel group owner emerged after the government pushed through tax breaks for hotels.

In response, Westerwelle has reiterated his determination to see through tax cuts despite Germany’s strained public finances and adopted arguments on welfare benefits to appeal to his core voters which are putting strains on the coalition.

“The image of this government in its first few months has been poor and doubts could grow about Merkel’s ability to lead unless she is firm with Westerwelle,” said Gero Neugebauer, a political analyst at Berlin’s Free University.

The conservative-FDP coalition was welcomed by business when it won power in September as a break from the wrangling that beset the previous conservative-Social Democrat coalition.

Westerwelle caused a storm recently by describing as socialist Germany’s attitude to the welfare state – a relatively generous net of benefits and support that formed the foundation of German state reconstruction after World War Two.

He compared long-term unemployment benefits to “late Roman decadence” and insisted the system needed a radical rethink.

Scorn
In a sign of the growing tensions in the coalition, conservatives have poured scorn on Westerwelle.

“In Roman times, decadence was about… Emperor Caligula appointing his ass as consul. Westerwelle’s comparison is right up to a point: 100 days ago, an ass became foreign minister,” former CDU cabinet minister Heiner Geissler told Die Welt paper.

Westerwelle’s cabinet colleague, CDU Labour Minister Ursula von der Leyen, also distanced herself, saying the welfare state had proved itself in the last 60 years and she saw no decadence.

The debate also triggered criticism from senior FDP colleagues about his leadership style. Some have demanded he relinquish some of his responsibilities. As foreign minister and party head, many think Westerwelle has too much on his plate.

“The party leadership needs to be stronger as a team. More FDP faces need to be in the foreground,” Westerwelle’s deputy Andreas Pinkwart told the Hamburger Abendblatt, adding the slump in the polls showed voters were very disappointed with the FDP.

A key test comes in May with an election in Germany’s most populous state, North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW).

It is uncertain if the CDU and FDP will hold the state. Analysts say the FDP is doing so badly, the CDU may be forced to find another partner in the Greens.

“If the NRW vote goes badly for the FDP, pressure will grow on Westerwelle to give up some responsibility. That looks bad, said Dietmar Herz, political scientist at Erfurt University.

“The FDP has been thrown into a panic. Westerwelle has gone storming in and tried to appeal to his core supporters but it’s unclear if his strategy will work,” added Herz.

The effect could be to limit the appeal of the FDP, traditionally seen as a party for young professionals, which Westerwelle successfully widened in 11 years of opposition.