Lower Austrian FPÖ provincial councilor Gottfried Waldhäusl has catapulted himself to the sidelines with his scandal-sayer in a TV debate with schoolchildren and his refusal to apologize for it. Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner (ÖVP) called the statement “Vienna would still be Vienna” “alien” and did not want to decide on Thursday whether Waldhäusl would belong to the future state government. The mayor of Vienna, Michael Ludwig (SPÖ), invited the stricken school class to the town hall.
“If that (a strict asylum policy, as demanded by the FPÖ) had happened a long time ago, Vienna would still be Vienna,” Waldhäusl said on Puls 4 – prompting a student’s comment in the audience, who said there was If there weren’t people with a migrant background, the majority of her school class in Vienna doesn’t go to school these days. “Blank racism” (NEOS human rights spokeswoman Stephanie Krisper), “inhumane” (Green women’s spokeswoman Meri Disoski), “irritating” (ÖVP youth secretary of state Claudia Plakolm) were just some of the reactions that have hit the FPÖ man since then.
Call for resignation over ‘fantasies of gun violence’
This left him unmoved. “I support this statement 100 percent,” he said Thursday. And further: he was “afraid that one day my four grandchildren will have to defend our homeland Austria with arms”. The “illegal mass immigration” means that “we have to fight for our homeland if we don’t put an end to it”. That earned him a request for resignation from SPÖ bond manager Christian Deutsch. First Waldhäusl denied the students’ right to exist, now he indulges in “fantasies about gun violence”.
Ludwig “proud of everyone who lives here and contributes”
Deutsch’s party colleague Ludwig spoke in a Twitter video (see below) of “deeply inhumane statements that must be strongly rejected”. As mayor of Vienna, he is “very proud of everyone who lives here and contributes to the city” – regardless of their origin. “And I support those young people who are worried about the future.”
He has now invited the school class to the town hall “to make it clear that I especially appreciate young people who want to contribute to our society”. He thinks it is important to talk to young people about the future of the city – “and there is one subject that is very important: togetherness”.
Who will be the Blue Council of State?
The last word on the political future of Waldhäusl has probably not yet been spoken. Mikl-Leitner sees the ball at the FPÖ and said on Thursday: “Only if someone says he wants to (remain as a provincial councilor, note) it is not yet clear whether he will be at all”. Under the system of proportional representation, the FPÖ is entitled to a deputy governor and two state councilors, nominated by the club based on Sunday’s election results.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
