US embassy cable - 05FRANKFURT3867

UNCLAS FRANKFURT 003867 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, ECON, PINR, GM 
SUBJECT: New Baden-Wuerttemberg State Cabinet 
 
REF: a) Frankfurt 2973, b) 04 Frankfurt 10621 
 
Sensitive but unclassified; not for internet distribution. 
 
1. (U) SUMMARY:  After assuming office (ref A), new Baden- 
Wuerttemberg (B-W) Minister President Guenther Oettinger 
(CDU/Christian Democrat) reshuffled the long-standing state 
government and laid out an extensive program to gain re-election 
in March 2006.  On April 29, Oettinger replaced former M-P Teufel 
as state CDU chairman.  Part of the new CDU generation of 
regional leaders, Oettinger's activist agenda focuses on economic 
growth, education, and child-care/family policy.  END SUMMARY. 
 
2. (U) Sworn into office April 21, Oettinger moved a week later 
to appoint a partially reshuffled cabinet with three major 
appointments (all Christian Democrats) 
-- longtime Oettinger confidant Andreas Renner as State Minister 
for Social Affairs 
-- Peter Hauk, another close friend of Oettinger, as Minister for 
Agriculture 
-- former Environment Minister Stefan Mappus as CDU State 
Parliament Caucus Chief. 
 
Former Agricultural Minister Willi Staechele will now serve as 
Minister at the B-W State Chancellery.  Interestingly, Oettinger 
kept former rival Annette Schavan as State Education Minister and 
expanded that ministry's functions (reflecting the importance of 
education as a campaign issue). 
 
3. (U) In his first program speech before the B-W State 
Parliament, Oettinger laid out his agenda for the ten months 
until state elections (3/2006), with new support for economic 
growth, education, innovation, and child-care.  By increasing the 
number of all-day child-care centers, Oettinger aims to boost 
work-force participation (and the flagging birth rate) and to 
attract single mothers, young families, and urban voters who 
value child-care and have tended to reject the B-W CDU's 
traditional image of the family.  Oettinger called for flexible 
labor laws and lower taxes particularly for small and medium- 
sized companies and criticized B-W's sizable net payment into the 
federal/state budget system (which funnels resources to 
economically depressed areas), noting that the state may again 
challenge the system in the courts (as it did in 1999). 
 
4. (U) At a special CDU convention April 29, Oettinger was 
elected B-W CDU state chairman with 89.9% of the votes, 
succeeding former M-P Erwin Teufel.  In his farewell speech to 
delegates, Teufel congratulated his successor and promised to 
support the Christian Democrats in the 2006 election campaign.  B- 
W observers see Teufel's show of good will (after long-standing 
bad blood with Oettinger) as another sign that the state CDU will 
quickly overcome recent divisions within the party.  Political 
observers also give credit to Oettinger's relative youth (he 
turns 52 this year) and his close ties to other CDU minister- 
presidents of his generation. 
 
5. (SBU) COMMENT:  Oettinger is coming into his own politically, 
although his national political prospects remain limited.  His 
relatively activist agenda is likely the precursor to more broad- 
ranging initiatives after March 2006 state elections, in which 
the CDU is heavily favored to prevail (either alone or in 
continued coalition with the FDP).  Election victory next March 
would empower Oettinger to name additional supporters to the 
government, particularly more women (both the opposition and some 
CDU members criticized him for not naming more women cabinet 
members during this round).  In the meantime, Oettinger is 
unlikely to deviate radically from Teufel's political course over 
the last 14 years in order to keep the party united going into 
2006 state and national elections.  END COMMENT. 
 
BODDE