Criticism is escalating within the party regarding the intended dismissal of Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder by Chancellor Friedrich Merz (both CDU members), particularly because there has been no clear plan for his successor.
Michael Ludwig, a CDU Member of the State Parliament from Rhineland-Palatinate, told the “Tagesspiegel” (Monday edition) that the Chancellor’s handling of Minister Schnieder is a “communication disaster.” Ludwig expressed outrage that the designated CDU/CSU parliamentary group leader, Thorsten Frei, might minimize the situation as merely “bad luck.”
“Our local branch, CDU Rhineland-Palatinate, is in shock,” Ludwig stated, noting that morale is “far below zero.” He added, “We do not understand the Chancellor.” Ludwig, who resides in the state parliamentary constituency of Schnieder and serves as Vice Head of the Bitburg-Prüm CDU district board, commented that they have a “competent, hardworking, well-regarded federal transport minister who knows he is being sacked-nobody knows why, and nobody knows who will replace him.”
He further remarked that the issue of Schnieder caused “huge trouble” among party members recently, adding, “Now this personal demolition, without need or reason. We are glad that we have put our state parliamentary election behind us.”
Although Ludwig criticized Merz, he also criticized Schnieder’s brief successor, CDU finance politician Fritz Güntzler. “Anyone who wants to restructure a cabinet must talk to all involved parties in advance, and they must do so with time,” Ludwig said. He suggested that the Chancellor has “stumbled into something, and he must now deal with the consequences himself.” According to the Mainz state parliamentarian, the damage “cannot be easily fixed.” Regarding Güntzler, he asserted that someone who first agrees to and then withdraws from a ministerial position is disqualified from holding any future office. Whether this sequence of events truly occurred remains unconfirmed.
Earlier, Gerhard Kauth, chairman of Schnieder’s local CDU association in Arzfeld, had also voiced his disapproval of Merz. Kauth told the “Tagesspiegel,” “We do not understand why Patrick Schnieder is being made the sacrificial lamb now.” He added, “What Merz is doing to Patrick Schnieder is incomprehensible to us all; I consider it scandalous. From a stylistic point of view, it is the worst of the worst. The whole of Rhineland-Palatinate is shaking its head-no one understands it.”
Kauth also stated that even the opposition lacks understanding. “We do not grasp how one can treat a person like this,” the politician said. He elaborated that Chancellor Merz should know “that you cannot quickly overhaul the Ministry of Transport.” He emphasized that Schnieder was “on the right track” and had “done a top job.” Kauth pointed out that Merz had known Schnieder for many years, noting that the minister was an experienced, diligent jurist who had worked excellently as a association mayor. The cancellation of Schnieder’s position without a clear replacement, he concluded, was “shoddy work in every sense.”
