opinion
I. Want. Chancellor. Will. Immediately after the historic CDU defeat, Armin Laschet did not choose a single word of self-criticism. Once again, he revealed a smug, toxic masculinity. He should take an example from Annalena Baerbock. Alone, because conversations can be held much better with insight.
By Linda Peikert
Annalena Baerbock takes the stage with Robert Habeck. A few months ago there was still a lot of hope among the Greens: Chancellor again after Angela Merkel? This time a young woman who is committed to climate protection and social justice? Baerbock’s polls initially shot up. But from the dream: The Greens will not provide the Chancellor. And Baerbock? She takes responsibility. She praises her party colleagues and immediately admits her own mistakes. “We wanted more. We didn’t achieve that. Also because of our own mistakes at the beginning of the election campaign,” she says, and continues “my own mistakes.”
Change of location Konrad-Adenauer-Haus on Sunday evening: Armin Laschet stands surrounded by party colleagues: inside at the microphone. Angela Merkel is also at his side. The worst result in the history of the Union cannot be ignored. The “official bouns” was missing, says Laschet. And despite the obvious defeat, Laschet speaks of a “clear mission”. He will “do everything possible to form a federal government under the leadership of the Union, because Germany now needs a future coalition”. Not a word of self-criticism, not a word that it was his appearance in recent weeks that brought the Union into this situation.
Armin Laschet: Just don’t admit failure
The opposite way of dealing with one’s own responsibility was obvious. The young woman self-reflectively looks for the fault in herself, the old man prefers to find others. On the one hand honest communication that creates transparency and facilitates conversations, on the other hand toxic masculinity and overconfidence that coalition talks should certainly not facilitate.
Even if Armin Laschet was a little more meek on Monday after the presidium meeting and at least showed a kind of self-reflection (“Of course I also know that I have my personal share in this election result”): Laschet’s basic impulse remains the same, not to admit failure , under no circumstances show weakness, keep power.
Armin Laschet has been the prime example of an old, white man for months. His communication behavior: He is one of those baby boomers who races through all the faux pas, then rejects the guilt or pams child reporters. As a top candidate, is an exaggerated ego and a lack of ability for self-reflection sent in? Or is it reminiscent of embarrassing appearances by other old, white men, like that of Gerhard Schröder in the 2005 election? “It is clear that no one but me is in a position to provide a stable government,” he said at the time. That didn’t go over well 16 years ago – and it wasn’t the truth either.
Courage to name your own mistakes would be advisable
In situations like this, women just don’t get that large amount of misplaced pride in the way. This is also shown by other examples from the past of how women act communicatively in moments of crisis, regardless of the power constellation: When the SPD landed 1.8% behind the CDU in the state elections in North Rhine-Westphalia in 2017, Hannelore Kraft was still on Election evening back instead of seeing it as a “government mandate” (theoretically she could have spoken and governed with the FDP). Isn’t it almost ironic that management positions are still mostly occupied by men today, instead of people who have an eye on the matter and not their own ego?
Laschet has made many mistakes in recent months: he giggled at the flood disaster, presented himself to the side of a lateral thinker in the election spot and even folded his ballot incorrectly on election day. At least now that around a million voters have migrated to the SPD coalition partner, it would be time to act a little more modestly and more self-reflective. The election results and the popularity polls do not suggest a government mandate. The baby boomers still have a great influence on the elections, but the younger generations are now also increasingly in the voting booths: A smug man who puts on even thicker instead of insight does not necessarily go down well. So maybe Laschet should take an example from Baerbock: the courage to confess and openly error communication.
David William is a talented author who has made a name for himself in the world of writing. He is a professional author who writes on a wide range of topics, from general interest to opinion news. David is currently working as a writer at 24 hours worlds where he brings his unique perspective and in-depth research to his articles, making them both informative and engaging.
