He was closer to Chancellor Angela Merkel than almost any other top politician, serving her as Minister of the Environment and Chancellery, most recently as Minister of Economics: Peter Altmaier (63, CDU).
In the BILD interview, the Saarlander takes stock, talks about Merkel, muesli and lean chicken.
BILD: Mr. Altmaier, do you remember the day you first ran into Angela Merkel?
Altmaier: “That was on a November day in the early 1990s, I was attending an ecumenical service at the CDU federal party conference in Düsseldorf and Angela Merkel was sitting a few rows in front of me in the church. When I saw her, I was very impressed and touched – and didn’t know why. Because we didn’t talk to each other back then. “
It seems to have been Providence: many years later you became one of the Chancellor’s closest confidants. How did you manage to gain their trust?
Altmaier: “That is a question for the Chancellor, not for me. But personal loyalty and the many crises have certainly done their part. When I became Parliamentary Managing Director in 2009, we had to fight for our Chancellor majority in every vote – regardless of whether it was about the euro crisis or the nuclear phase-out. Later there were, for example, the Ukraine crisis and the refugee crisis. Back then I worked through many nights and kept myself awake with jugs full of coffee and other aids … “
That sounds like a headline, so elaborate …
Altmaier (laughs): “Of course only with ‘legal drugs’ like chocolate and cola. I was convinced early on that Angela Merkel is an outstanding Chancellor who is also unmatched internationally. I also enjoyed working for her because I shared most of her convictions and very much appreciate her human nature, especially towards the weaker and disadvantaged. “
Sounds like she’s a very demanding boss …
Altmaier: “Is correct. But I was ready to work very hard, like others on our team, sometimes to the limit of my resilience. Incidentally, I’ve never regretted it because it gave me the chance to support Angela Merkel in her work for Germany and Europe. It was a great privilege. With Merkel, the image of Germany in the world has changed for the better. In the years before that, Germany was respected internationally – sometimes reluctantly – due to its economic strength. Today we enjoy enormous appreciation and sympathy all over the world. This is also thanks to Angela Merkel, her personal modesty and her clear principles. ”
As a taxpayer, I am of course pleased that you went about your job with such dedication. But aren’t you afraid that if the state fires you from service, you could fall into a deep hole on Wednesday?
Altmaier: “I’m not worried about that. It has already become quieter in the last few weeks because I was not involved in the coalition negotiations. “
In fact, it looks like you’ve lost weight …
Altmaier: “That’s right, I have changed my diet and lost weight – how much exactly is not yet revealed. But the button on my suit jacket has never been so good. For breakfast there is now only sugar-free muesli with blueberries and pineapple, for dinner lean chicken. This helps. And also the anticipation that I can now speak and see dear people again, whom I had to put off again and again in recent years. And there are many exciting books waiting on my bookshelves, for which, as a minister, I had far too little time. “
Is it actually true that you have collected 500 books on Bismarck?
Peter Altmaier: “No, that is not correct.”
Then I am misinformed …
Altmaier: “Yes, it’s about 640! Hardly any other politician has so much been written and argued about. “
Part of the truth about Bismarck is that he had an ambivalent relationship to democracy. He found Parliament a nuisance. In the past few months, too, many members of the Bundestag had the impression that the German government under Merkel had found parliament to be downright disruptive. Should the federal government have involved the MPs better in the Corona crisis?
Altmaier: “That is clearly wrong: Parliament always had and still has it in its hand to address the key issues in the pandemic, which it has done a number of times. But the decision is still made by the majority and not the vocal minority of AfD MPs, who dangerously abuse the concerns of many citizens. “
Are there people to whom you need and want to apologize?
Altmaier: “Everyone makes mistakes from time to time, and I have certainly made some too, especially since I am often a fan of clear words. If I unintentionally wronged someone or hurt them, I usually apologized. Incidentally, Angela Merkel has done a lot to ensure that the tone in Parliament is less harsh and hurtful today. “
How about Mr. Laschet, has he already forgiven you for opposing him a few months ago?
Altmaier: “At the time, we struggled hard with the question of which candidate for chancellor would have the best chance of getting the government mandate again and being able to help shape our country. I was and am convinced that Markus Söder would have been the better choice back then. I gave factual reasons for that in the federal executive committee of my party at the time. After Armin was a candidate for chancellor, I supported him in around 50 election events. I do not have to apologize or ask for forgiveness for either one or the other. The fact that your newspaper, the BILD, was able to report practically everything from that board meeting ‘live’ was not Paul Ronzheimer’s problem, but that of the person in the CDU who violated the requirement of confidentiality. “
Is it good that the Union can now recover from the opposition?
Altmaier: “I didn’t want the opposition. But the voters decided differently. If we’re honest, we didn’t make it very easy for them to choose us with a series of bankruptcies, bad luck and mishaps. Now we have to win the disappointed citizens back to the Union. I am still convinced that our country is in good hands and governed by the CDU and CSU, as you can see from the results of the last 16 years. A new generation of politicians now has to do that. As a committed Christian Democrat for 46 years, I will be happy to support this, even if I will hold back as far as possible from day-to-day politics. “
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