Basic HTML Version
PASTOR'S REPORT, June 4, 1979
Page· 8
Carstens, however, does mark a change in political temperament in West
Germany. According to Handelsblatt, Germany's "Wall Street Journal,"
"many think that with the entering into office of Karl Carstens there will
be the beginning of a new era of conservatism, even of reaction, in the
Federal Republic." Only time will tell, said Handelsblatt.
Close Friend of Strauss
The Stuttgarter Zeitunq of May 25 said that "Karl Carstens personifies the
trend toward conservatism as the only tenable unifying factor in the other
wise rather tensf' situation in the CDU/CSU."
Much of this tension revolves around the political ambitions of Franz Josef
Strauss, Minister President of Bavaria, and head of the Christian Socialist
Union (CSU), Bavaria's sister party to the national Christian Democratic
Union (CDU) .
This tension is }1eating up. Carstens is a good friend of Strauss, as is
Richard Stiicklen, the new president of the Bundestag. Only twenty-four
hours after the election of "his" candidate Carstens as Federal President,
Strauss announced his candidacy as future chancellor on the combined
CDU/
CSU slate. (National elections are due to take place sometime in 1980.)
The Bavarian strongman, known as a "kingmaker" within the CDU/CSU, may not
win the candidacy slot. rrhe much larger CDU faction has announced it will
support Ernst Albrecht as the CDU/CSU candidate. The feeling is that
Strauss
may
insist that the
entirP
coalition
move
more
right-ward toward
his liking in order co retain his support, and as a condition that he not
pull the CSU
out
and "qo national" as a fourth party.
The West German newsweekly der Spiegel is wary of
every Strauss move, ever sir1ce Straus_s_, as Defense
Minister, tried to block publication of a partic
ular Spiegc1 issue
jr.
l'.J62 (the notorious "der
SpiccJel af:fzd
c").
On the cuvc,1 ol i_t.3 l'-'tay .!.1 i.ssue Lreproduced here
for your j_n teresL/, the maya.zine features a brood
inq, l,:,,._"!rinci :;trauss 1oomincJ in the background be
hind
Ca
rs Lens. 'L'hc cover title is: "Federal Presi
dent Carstens; Federal Chancellor Strauss?" In its
cover : · ;tory, dc.:r Spicqel says the following: "With
r'.ar·] C,;r:;;tens·:,�, president of the Federal Republic
of Ccrrnany 0nd l<.ichard StLicklen as president of the
Htrndc·�,Liiq, two :·.; t rau�.;s friends an, rnovinq up into
the hiyhcst offices of the reoublic. The CDU has
long since lost its faith in lts /�arlier7 candi
d,3tCf
for ,:hdllc,,1101: Koh]. As the · savioi: of the /CDU/CSU/ union and chal
lenger of the c�anccl1or, Strauss is becoming mor� and mZre inevitable.
"Strauss cc\
L 1'.3 the <·lr,ction of Carstens a 'good sign'--he hopes that the
hour of the conservatives has come in Bonn. The advance of his favorites
into the hiqhc�;t ranks could, so he figures, remove further the CDU's in
hibitions, so tt1at they will give the kingmaker himself a try in 1980--as
chancellor candidutc PrJnz Josef Strauss.