Hessian Minister-President Boris Rhein of the CDU has called on his political party to place greater emphasis on its conservative roots. According to Rhein, the CDU’s conservative element is vitally important to its existence. He named former CDU Chancellor Helmut Kohl, the former Hessian state chairman Alfred Dregger, and the former CSU boss Franz-Josef Strauß as exemplary historical figures.
The CDU politician further warned that unless they act, conservative parties face the same fate as is happening across Europe: they risk disappearing. He stressed that the party must prevent this decline, which involves embodying “more Helmut Kohl.”
Rhein emphasized the importance of preventing the relinquishing of national symbols to what he described as a party that is partially right-extremist and fundamentally unpatriotic. He criticized the AfD, stating that its aims include destroying the type of Europe that Kohl’s policies made possible.
While identifying the CDU as a center-right party in Germany, Rhein concurred with Strauß’s view: they must actively prevent any other force from being established permanently on the right of them.
