Rehlinger urges "Buy European" policy as German industry faces pressure

The SPD deputy leader's appearance on Markus Lanz moves from Berlin's coalition impasse to industrial competition, Audi's Trump appearance and her party's leadership.

Channel: ZDFheute Nachrichten ·

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Linke in Berlin: Sollte die SPD die Verhandlungen abbrechen? | Markus Lanz vom 27. Oktober 2026

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0:00Rehlinger distances herself from a coalition with Berlin's Left Party, without deciding whether Berlin's SPD should abandon talks.
4:12An archival Krach interview sets boundaries against antisemites entering government and against housing expropriation.
15:58Trump promotes Audi investment at a Georgia rally; Lanz and Bröcker criticize Döllner's appearance on the campaign stage.
20:13Rehlinger advocates targeted European industrial policy and raw-material security to counter Chinese subsidies.
23:02Rehlinger supports choosing a woman as federal president and considers Ilse Aigner suitable.
30:37Rehlinger praises Klingbeil's negotiating skills and indicates support if he seeks the SPD leadership again.

Cheaper electricity alone will not save every German industry from Chinese competition, Anke Rehlinger argues. The Saarland premier and deputy leader of Germany's Social Democratic Party wants a targeted European industrial strategy, including a "Buy European" approach and measures to secure raw materials.

Her argument comes in an extended Markus Lanz discussion published by Germany's ZDFheute Nachrichten. Although the excerpt opens with stalled coalition negotiations in Berlin, it develops into a broader examination of industrial jobs, political credibility and the SPD's future.

Rehlinger points to the economic transformation of Saarland, the southwestern German state she governs, describing efforts to attract pharmaceutical investment following Ford's departure. She argues that Chinese subsidies can make some products impossible to compete with even if German manufacturers received electricity free of charge. Journalist Michael Bröcker, editor-in-chief of Table.Briefings, emphasizes a different lever: sharply reducing electricity network charges and levies.

The industrial debate follows footage of Audi chief Gernot Döllner appearing alongside Donald Trump at a campaign event in Georgia. Trump promotes billions in investment in a new US plant, and Döllner thanks him for his support. Lanz and Bröcker criticize the executive's campaign-stage appearance before the discussion turns to energy costs, bureaucracy and responsibility for German automakers' difficulties.

Berlin supplies the opening political test. Rehlinger says she cannot imagine a coalition with the Berlin branch of the Left Party as it stands, but stresses that she does not set the Berlin SPD's negotiating boundaries. An archival interview shows Berlin SPD politician Steffen Krach ruling out both antisemites in the state government and housing expropriation. The exchange does not produce an announcement that negotiations will end.

Asked about seeking the national SPD leadership, Rehlinger instead emphasizes her commitment to remaining Saarland's premier beyond 2027. Later, she praises Lars Klingbeil's ability to hold the party together and negotiate agreements, indicating that she would support another leadership bid. Bröcker identifies Manuela Schwesig as a particularly influential potential contender.

The program also considers Germany's next federal president. Rehlinger says the time is right for a woman and regards Ilse Aigner as suitable for the office.