Good luck. Parliament has a whole host of questions, particularly about possible links between the arms dealer’s donation and the government’s subsequent approval of the sale of 36 armored vehicles to Saudi Arabia. A former CDU general secretary whom Kohl had dumped admitted there were multiple secret slush funds; lawmakers want to investigate them, too. “We want to know, what happened to the money?” said SPD parliamentarian Frank Hoffmann. “What was it used for? Why was the money donated? Was it meant to make Helmut Kohl happy, or was it meant to influence decisions?”
The former chancellor hasn’t come close to providing satisfactory answers. Initially, he dismissed the revelations, stemming from a tax-evasion investigation of former treasurer Kiep, as a “sickening smear.” Kiep also denies any wrongdoing. Then, in a formal statement last week, Kohl said that he used the money to make secret “special payments to party branches and organizations.” He added that he regretted it “if the consequence of this action was a lack of transparency and perhaps violations of rules on party financing,” but he strenuously denied “that political decisions made by me could be bought.” Wolfgang Schuble, the CDU’s current leader, backed him up: “Nobody enriched themselves.” But under German law, parties are obligated to report large donations and to fully disclose their finances. As Schuble effectively conceded, Kohl’s “patriarchal style” included a willingness to stretch the rules.
The SPD was ecstatic, at least in private. “Schroder is a very lucky man,” said one senior official. “Blair has his new baby, and Schroder has a CDU money-laundering machine.” Schroder allies clearly hope that the scandal will tarnish not just Kohl but his party, and so allow the SPD, which has suffered a string of electoral setbacks, to recover in state elections next year. “Enjoy this while it lasts because it won’t last very long,” the CDU’s Schuble admonished them. “It will not distract from the weakness of your government.” But, at the moment, the CDU is looking perilously vulnerable, too.
