This is a page three story, but could result in the Defense Minister under Chancellor Merkel being 'let go'.
So here's the basis of the story....the German Federal Court of Auditors came up and said it was rather odd in terms of cost-effectiveness and legality.....to have so many contractors advising the defense ministry. The amount talked about that triggered this? Three-digit millions.
The CDU political figure in charge? Ursula von der Leyen.
Naturally, this report got into the hands of the Green Party, the FDP Party and the Linke Party. They want a committee of inquiry.
Public TV (ARD), Channel One.....reports the bulk of this story.
The blunt point here?
A lot of new technology ideas are floating around and the Bundeswehr (the German army) will say they need 'experts' to explain these, write the requirements, and help plan for the future. The opposition parties will say this is outrageous in terms of cost and you should only pay x-amount (never saying the right amount). Course, then you'd get the 'experts' laughing and being unwilling to cooperate.
But here's the amusing missing piece of the story. Virtually every single ministry is having to hire people to explain the new technology and how they can take their current situation....fitting it to the future. So these opposition folks are opening up a can of worms.
And if the CDU-SPD folks ended up being kicked out in 2021, with the Greens in charge (now a possibility), partnering with the Linke Party? Well....would they go and hire consultants and repeat this entire game? Well....yes.
But all of these puts pressure on the Defense Minister, and the possibility of 'dumping' her. That is the real end-point in this game.....to embarrass Merkel in some way and show weakness in the coalition.
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