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Germany's neoliberal FDP: No chance for a comeback?
(www.dw.com)
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this post was submitted on 09 Feb 2026
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I know this might be a really unpopular statement for some. But I actually think a democratic (neo)liberal party like them in parliament is a lot better than having other populist parties like AfD or BSW. I believe they deserved what happened to them last election but our democracy is worse off if they fall out completely. All the restrictive proposals towards surveillance just show me that individual rights are quickly forgotten or brushed aside often in the name of "protecting children"
They aren't democrat. They are maximally corrupt cleptocrats who will sell their political influence to the highest bidder. This is the opposite of democracy.
Unchecked neoliberal cleptocracy and its social consequences, combined with parroting far right rhetoric to gain cheap voters is what gave rise to the AfD and their ilk in the first place.
I know most people on this platform are left leaning. I have yet to see proof that they are any more corrupt than any other party. Its just that they are especially strong on corporate economic interest in many cases which makes many see them unfavorable. I still think its good to have only so much regulation as needed but otherwise let the market of ideas play mostly free
They are a bit more brazen in their corruption. Like when they lowered VAT for hotel stays from 19 to 7% and accepted a donation of 1 million € from a hotel chain afterwards.
You are right about most other parties being incredibly corrupt, though.
We very desperately need a liberal party in Germany. But the FDP definitely isn't it. They've always been a party of redistribution from the poor to the rich. The talking points about freedom are just window dressing.
No when it came to things like chat control they've always been very firm. SPD or CDU keep trying to increase government oversight. Their closeness to lobbies is very bad but still I think a party that is for individual rights and looks out for a mostly free economy (without compromising social services) is a good thing. The boogeyman Lindner is gone now. I hope they come back despite how unpopular they are in many circles
This. If the choice was between redistribution to the rich and civil rights, they always chose redistribution.
hey at least they are consistent
Not in the 70s
That was just a phase.
Last time the FDP was in the Bundestag, they were even part of the governing coalition (the most productive and for the most part most progressive and beneficial for the largest parts of the population Germany ever had) and the reason that coalition failed. And that was not even the first time the FDP blew it. The FDP has no place in our parliaments. They are neither better nor worse than AFD or BSW, they're just bad in a different way.
They are for sure better than AfD or BSW. They are not nearly as bad even if you dislike them. They are no threat to democracy. They deserved the election loss last time, but the core of the party should have a place in german democracy. This might be where we disagree and its fine. The other parties were also preparing for the coalition breaking apart, the FDP just had a stupid title and inverted pyramid which made voters lose trust in them. They are different to SPD or Greens which is why we saw so much friction between them. But Olaf Scholz knew that the FDP would never support an end of the debt break and thus his ultimatum was his decision to end the coalition. Its good that the debt break is losend but the current government spends money in consumptive ways which is bad long term for our debts as interest payments will keep increasing. France is currently forced to push through an unpopular saving plan since they never stopped making debt and if we don't look out we might at some point have to make decisions they're making
They brought Kohl to power. The AfD has to work hard to match that.