Interview with Brandenburg's Prime Minister Woidke: "A question of the pride of the East Germans"

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Mr. Woidke, the SPD threatens heavy losses in Brandenburg, red-red has no opinion after today's survey stand any more. If you want to stay Prime Minister, you may need the help of the Greens. Do you dread the elections?

Dietmar Woidke: I am optimistic that we will be able to further improve our approval ratings. We are the most successful federal state in the East. But as a SPD in Brandenburg, of course, we also depend on the federal trend. Of course we still have room for improvement.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Left and Green are both pushing for a faster coal exit. You brake against it. That could be a problem in a red-red-green trilogy.

Woidke: The current coal compromise is good, a signal against polarization and for the ability to compromise in difficult situations. At the same time, I am convinced that we need to have another discussion: For years, we have been struggling to build power lines from north to south. It would make more sense to use and consume renewable energies locally. Or even more clearly: in the East we have to hold the industry there and relocate where renewable energy is.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Do not we have to think bigger about climate protection? Do not we basically need more radicalism, more speed, faster upheavals? That is what the young people demand in student protests.

Woidke: I am glad that obviously a rebellious generation is growing up, who is self-confident, has his own goals and does not like everything that cares about her future. This is an important sign for Germany and Europe. But of course, politicians need to include more in their considerations than maximum demands on billboards. Democracy lives from the compromise and the consideration of arguments. It takes patience and time.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Also in the refugee policy, there are differences in the center-left camp. They demand a "clear edge", the state must in doubt "quickly deport". How do you want to convey the left and the green?

Woidke: People rightly expect a strong state that enforces rules. The state can not surrender at the border guard. There have been mistakes in 2015 and 2016. We must not belittle the crime of refugees, but must draw a line with the few who seriously interfere with living together in the country. Incidentally, this is above all in the interest of the people in need who are really seeking protection here. And that's what the SPD stands for. Others see things differently. Humanity should not mean naivety.

SPIEGEL ONLINE : Who do you mean?

Woidke: For example, the Greens, which permanently block the expansion of the list of safe countries of origin.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Your own coalition partner rejects the expansion also in the Bundesrat Brandenburg could not agree.

Woidke: I hope there's still some movement going on. What we are currently experiencing is indirect discrimination. You can ask a Moroccan what he thinks about the federal government classifying its country as a rogue state. We stand for the right to asylum and the Geneva Convention. In the refugee policy, we finally have to get out of the ideological trenches.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Your party member and Finance Minister Olaf Scholz wants to cut federal funds for the integration of refugees. Why does not he listen to you?

Woidke: We are leading the discussion with the Federal Government. Integration is not a sprint, but a marathon. If we save now in the wrong place, we will have to spend much more later to fight the problems. The federal government must not steal its responsibility.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: At federal level, the SPD persists in the survey cellar - despite all renewal attempts. Is Andrea Nahles the right person on the party leadership?

Woidke: Yes. Andrea Nahles has taken responsibility for the party in a very difficult situation. We must now move forward thematically and show even greater determination and profile in the Grand Coalition. In the end, election results count, not polls. Staff discussions do not help us at all.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Does the GroKo still help? Or should the SPD rather give up the alliance?

Woidke: Not as long as we can do something for the people. The SPD would have to get out of the grand coalition if it can not achieve its goals.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: And is it ready?

Woidke: At the moment we are dealing with a CDU that has moved significantly to the right. This is a great opportunity for the SPD: we are again perceived more as a party of workers and as a protective power for those who are not doing so well. We have to live up to this claim.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: So is the left turn right?

Woidke: What is left turn? It is about concrete policies for the people: I consider the remorse without neediness test important, especially for the people of Brandenburg. It concerns exactly the generation that rebuilt this country in the 1990s. This is also a matter of pride of the East Germans.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: The departure from Hartz IV has made for many in your party for great relief. Share the euphoria?

Woidke : No. The SPD should not be ashamed of Agenda 2010. That is harmful to the party. The agenda reforms were right then. They have advanced Germany and made Germany better. But of course it is perfectly fine if today we classify certain regulations as out of date and correct them.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: And the East? Do you still feel detached?

Woidke: Again the example pension: Here, 30 years after the fall of the Wall, we still have two separate legal systems. That is an absurdity. But not only that. Many people in the East do not have big savings, can not afford additional payments for old age care. There, many people are threatened with the poverty trap. In addition, we have uneven collective wages in many industries. In the East, on average, only 80 percent of the West's wage is earned and, at the same time, much of the work is done longer. Something has to change.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: In the East, the AfD is particularly strong. This also leads to completely new coalition considerations: In Brandenburg, even CDU and Left have flirted with each other.

Woidke: I can see that with great composure.

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