Helicopter flight revives attacks on German defense minister as key election looms – POLITICO & More News Here

BERLIN — German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht’s political opponents are circling, utilizing studies that she took her grownup son together with her on a authorities helicopter for a vacation journey.

The furor has added to earlier criticism of Lambrecht’s dealing with of the defense ministry, which she took over in December, and has turned up the warmth on Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats (SPD) forward of a giant state election this weekend.

Business Insider first reported the journey on Monday, revealing Labrecht’s 21-year-old son accompanied her final month when she flew to the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein to go to German troops after which traveled on to the North Sea island of Sylt for a vacation.

The Defense Ministry has stated Lambrecht acted legally over the journey — correctly notifying officers of her plans days forward of time and overlaying the prices for the personal journey out of her personal pocket.

But opponents of Scholz’s authorities and media commentators have lambasted Lambrecht over the journey, saying it was politically unwise to make use of authorities transport to take a personal vacation. They have famous the practice from Berlin would have taken lower than six hours, and that the helicopter runs at a price of €5,300 per hour.

On Wednesday, Lambrecht sought to attract a line beneath the affair. She instructed ZDF tv that she understood the criticism and advised that, on reflection, she may need dealt with the journey in a different way. But she burdened she had executed all the pieces by the e book and in addition requested for understanding that she needed to take care of an in depth relationship together with her son within the midst of a demanding ministerial job.

The uproar has reopened a nationwide debate over Lambrecht, a senior Social Democrat who has struggled since her shock appointment to shake off a repute that she’s not well-positioned to run Germany’s defense coverage with battle raging in Europe.

The consideration on Lambrecht, a former justice and household minister beneath Chancellor Angela Merkel, comes at a foul time for Scholz’s SPD.

His celebration is coming off a crushing defeat in a northern state election final week and now faces a decent race this weekend in North Rhine-Westphalia, the place the Social Democrats wish to unseat an incumbent conservative state premier from the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Germany’s essential opposition celebration. According to POLITICO’s Poll of Polls, the 2 events are polling neck-and-neck.

Political tussle

German politicians have spent the week sparring over Lambrecht.

“By the way, a trip to Sylt by train takes less than six hours from Berlin … If a 21-year-old can’t be expected to go through that, then I don’t know,” tweeted Dorothee Bär of the Bavarian conservative Christian Social Union (CSU) which makes up the biggest opposition group with the CDU, its bigger sister celebration.

The CDU’s Thorsten Frei stated Lambrecht “ought not to confuse the Luftwaffe with Lufthansa,” accusing her of “bad style.”

The Ministry of Justice later confirmed to the Bild tabloid that Lambrecht had additionally taken her son together with her on seven journeys overseas throughout her time operating the ministry.

Perhaps extra worrying for Lambrecht, criticism has additionally come from coalition companions.

Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, the top of the parliament’s defense committee and a member of the liberal Free Democrats (FDP), referred to as Lambrecht’s conduct “politically imprudent” though she additionally defended the minister’s proper to go on a vacation each from time to time.

Meanwhile, Michael Roth, the top of the international affairs committee in parliament who’s himself an SPD politician, on Wednesday stated that “there are a few unanswered questions that will have to be clarified,” however on the identical time dismissed requires Lambrecht to resign as unjustified.

Ralf Stegner, one other SPD politician, was much less crucial, arguing the opposition is making an attempt to “gain a few cheap points” simply 4 days earlier than Germany’s most populous state, North Rhine-Westphalia, heads to the polls.

Lambrecht has described the media tales and ensuing attacks as a part of a “campaign” in opposition to her. But the harm might already be executed.

Reopening a debate

The helicopter experience has resurfaced conversations in Germany about Lambrecht’s {qualifications} for her job.

For weeks, she has confronted criticism for not getting the German army up to the mark rapidly following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Opinion polls additionally present Germans aren’t glad together with her efficiency. According to the most recent polling from German weekly Der Spiegel, Lambrecht ranks final amongst Scholz’s Cabinet in approval ranking.

Even earlier than Russia invaded Ukraine, Lambrecht was ridiculed for asserting Germany’s cargo of 5,000 protecting helmets to Ukraine, a transfer in keeping with German coverage on the time but in addition one which many felt might have been communicated higher.

And since Germany made its historic choice to offer Ukraine with weapons — repealing a long-standing ban on sending arms to battle zones — Lambrecht has shouldered a lot of the blame for gradual shipments, even when among the issues had been linked to a long time of miserly defense spending.

But for Lambrecht’s defenders, a lot of the criticism directed on the defense minister is tinged with sexism.

In April, Bild lambasted Lambrecht for carrying pumps throughout a army reception in Niger, quoting a colonel as saying, “She just doesn’t learn. With high heels in our most dangerous mission — embarrassing!”

The article was criticized as misogynistic by some on the time, with one SPD lawmaker calling it “pure sexism.”

This week, Stegner, the SPD politician, revived the topic, accusing the opposition of getting “nothing else to do but to talk about [Lambrecht’s] fingernails or her high heels instead of what she’s done so far.”

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