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Theo Müller: Alice Weidel “lives nearby”
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Robert Michael / IMAGO
The fact that dairy entrepreneur Theo Müller maintains contacts with the AfD caused widespread outrage a few weeks ago. In the weeks that followed, business bosses nationwide distanced themselves from the largely right-wing extremist party. Continental boss Nikolai Setzer told the current "Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung" that racism was damaging Germany as a business location.
And Müller? The dairy billionaire met with the "Neue Zürcher Zeitung" and chatted about weight-loss injections ("I've lost five kilos") - and about meetings with AfD leader Alice Weidel, with whom he wanted to continue to stay in touch. “She lives nearby and comes to visit often,” he told the newspaper. He likes to talk to her about politics, economics and social prosperity. “Yes, Alice Weidel is a friend,” the entrepreneur, known for brands such as Müllermilch, Landliebe and Weihenstephan, is quoted as saying.
“I am an immigrant myself”
He cannot understand the excitement over his contacts with AfD politicians. Müller, who has been a member of the CSU for around 30 years and, according to the interview, does not want to become an AfD member, said: "Of course there are individuals in the AfD who say stupid things, spread right-wing extremist slogans and, for example, Germans who were born somewhere else were, wanted to deport. Something like that is not possible, I strictly reject it." But he also said: "The AfD is a party that helps shape the will of the people. And as long as it is not banned, it is legal. Nobody is calling for a ban on the Left Party either.”
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, among others, recently called on companies to take a clear stance against the AfD. The SPD politician warned that "the climate of division and resentment that the AfD is fomenting is deterring highly qualified workers and skilled workers from abroad." After a long period of silence, there is now a growing awareness in business that the party is harmful to the economy. In Germany, the party recently achieved more than 20 percent in nationwide surveys; In addition to the Thuringia regional association led by Björn Höcke, the Saxony-Anhalt regional association is now also classified as right-wing extremist by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution.
Entrepreneur Müller rejected the fact that his stance on the AfD was normalizing populism and extremism. "I'm an immigrant myself." The southern German entrepreneur lives in Switzerland for tax reasons, but says he has no friends there.
At the same time, Müller made no secret of his critical stance on current migration policy. »The German state has been watching for years as the law is broken millions of times. According to the Basic Law, no one who enters from an EU country or another safe third country is entitled to asylum. “Still, migrants come into the country, shout ‘asylum!’ and are allowed to stay,” he said. A common asylum policy is being pursued in Brussels, which aims, among other things, not to burden the tasks resulting from political asylum solely on those member states with particularly long EU external borders. Germany only has one EU external border – with Switzerland.
Apr