Christian Lindner in “Maischberger”
“Wonder why Merz isn’t showing strong leadership”
Updated 11/20/2025 – 02:05Reading time: 4 minutes
Christian Lindner looks back at his political career in “Maischberger.” Juso boss Philipp Türmer and Tübingen Mayor Boris Palmer had a lively discussion.
In “Maischberger” two politically opposite people meet on Wednesday evening. Boris Palmer, non-party mayor of Tübingen, and Philipp Türmer, chairman of Jusos, discussed social benefits, pensions, migration and how to deal with the AfD controversially.
- Christian Lindnerformer Federal Minister of Finance (FDP)
- Boris Palmernon-party mayor of Tübingen
- Philip TurmerJusos Chairman
- Sabine Kipfelsbergerjournalist
- Markus PreissARD Brussels studio manager
- Ulrich Mangoldphilosopher and journalist
Regarding the issue of citizens’ money, Türmer accused the federal government of using planned sanctions to make people homeless. Anyone who doesn’t open the mail at a later date could lose all profits, “including rent.” This is incompatible with the welfare state. Instead, there needs to be certain minimum standards that must always be guaranteed. Palmer strongly disagrees.
It is “bogus” to claim that people are being sanctioned en masse for no reason. This shows, Palmer said, “that we have heartless, merciless fools in government.” However, this is wrong. However, considering the huge industrial and financial crisis, spending discipline is necessary.
When it comes to the topic of retirement, ideas collide again. Türmer called for a fundamental reform in which civil servants and self-employed people also pay into statutory pensions, and this was supported by the Expert Council. Palmer countered with a sharp rebuttal: This was “politics against mathematics.” The so-called sustainability factors have only just begun to be implemented, but the “cover” has already begun to be implemented. “This is not a generational issue, this is a mistake,” Palmer said.
The contrast is also clearly visible when discussing the topic of migration. Türmer warned against complete stigmatization of refugees. He wants to fight the cause, “not bad-mouth people.” Crime often arises from poverty, lack of prospects and social inequality.
Palmer strongly objected and warned against denying reality. “Some people deny climate change, some deny demographic change, others deny the reality of violence,” he said. Overrepresentation of certain groups is documented in police crime statistics. Türmer accused him of confusing cause and effect: “The connection you make: more migration means more crime, is wrong.” Palmer called this criticism a “cheap gimmick.”
Regarding the possibility of banning the AfD, the two of them had found common ground, at least regarding the seriousness of the problem. Türmer clearly expressed his support for banning parties: “They cannot be left to the responsibility of the government and for good reasons, there is a solution in our constitution against parties that want to eliminate democracy from within.” Palmer warned of failure in court, but said: “Please do it now. Then we will at least clarify whether a ban is possible.”
Before a face-to-face interview with Christian Lindner, the panel guests discussed the state of Germany and spoke about Friedrich Merz’s controversial statements about the Brazilian city of Belem. Following his visit to the climate conference in Belém, Merz revealed his impressions of the impoverished city in the Amazon at a trade congress in Berlin. “I asked some of the journalists I was with in Brazil last week: Which one of you wants to stay here? Nobody raised their hand,” he said. Journalist Sabine Kipfelsberger called Merz’s remarks “utterly outrageous” and “a kind of colonial arrogance.”
