TV-Quadrell: Dispute over the question of how the AfD is right

AfD Chancellor candidate Alice Weidel got violent in the four-round round at RTL/NTV with SPD Chancellor candidate Olaf Scholz and Union candidate Friedrich Merz (CDU). Scholz excluded a collaboration of democratic parties with the extreme right and then came to the AfD. He referred to the history of National Socialism. Weidel reacted indignantly: “I find this comparison scandalous. I have the way for myself personally and for the entire party.”

Scholz had said literally: “It is the case that we have a good tradition in Germany, which consists that we have drawn teaching from the experience of National Socialism: there is no collaboration with the extreme rights.” He was “incredibly depressed” about the CDU/CSU’s joint coordination with the AfD in the Bundestag.

Scholz also recalled statements by AfD Honorary Chairman Alexander Gauland, who said in June 2018: “Hitler and the Nazis are just a bird shit in over 1000 years of successful German history.” Later Gauland described his statement as “misinterpretable and thus politically unclear”. Weidel replied: “You can insult me ​​here tonight as you want. You insult millions of voters. I don’t affect that at all. I just represent these voices. Please write that behind your ears.” Weidel did not want to comment on several questions from the moderators about Gauland’s statement.

Merz called the AfD “a radical right -wing party, mostly right -wing extremist”. He gave Weidel an uncritical view of AfD rights from Björn Höcke. In an interview with the “Bild” newspaper, Weidel said: “So Björn Höcke and I, we get along very well.” She described her earlier attempt to exclude Höcke from the AfD as a mistake. When asked whether she regarded him as suitable for a ministerial office, Weidel replied with “yes”.

For her part, Weidel criticized “an insolent framing towards the alternative for Germany”, which she called “a free conservative party”.

Transparency note: The star is part of RTL Germany.