Martin Schulz famous quotes

The dream of Europe is a region of freedom and peace, of security, law, democracy, tolerance and mutual respect. If you look into the faces of the refugees you will see this dream. These are people who are fleeing from war, hate, violence and unjust systems.
-- Martin Schulz

#Dream #Hate #War

I'm not a populist. But I try to present complicated issues in such a way that people know where I stand.
-- Martin Schulz

#Issues #People #Trying

Referendums have always posed a threat when it comes to EU policy, because EU policy is complicated. They're an opportunity for those from all political camps who like to oversimplify things.
-- Martin Schulz

#Opportunity #Political #Complicated

We agree: Brussels can't regulate everything. I'm driven by something else: There are forces in Europe that want to generally give national policy priority over a common European approach. We have to prevent this.
-- Martin Schulz

#Europe #Giving #Priorities

The EU is an unique project that replaced war with peace, hate with solidarity. Overwhelming emotion for awarding of Nobel prize to EU
-- Martin Schulz

#Hate #War #Unique

A joint European army is a very far-reaching proposal and it would be difficult to implement. Such initiatives are nevertheless needed.
-- Martin Schulz

#Army #Joints #Would Be

We must now, in the 21st century, protect democracy, one which rests on fundamental rights for all, regardless of skin color, gender, race or religion. Nothing less than that is at stake.
-- Martin Schulz

#Color #Rights #Race

Solidarity is the fundamental idea of European cooperation. If a country feels itself to be militarily threatened and calls for soldiers, weapons and sanctions, then that's what it gets. When governments say they need money from the structural funds to stabilize their economy, that's what they get. But you can't cherry pick solidarity.
-- Martin Schulz

#Country #Government #Ideas

At the end of the day, men like Donald Trump need to be given that which they themselves dispense: clear messages. I would confront him as clearly and explicitly as possible. It is not only the right, but also the duty, of the leader of a German government to do that.
-- Martin Schulz

#Men #Leader #Duty

We are in the middle of a tough, ideological conflict that is being waged across the entire continent. On the one side are those who say that global challenges like migration and terror cannot be met with national parochialism. On the other side are those who would like to see a renaissance of the nation-state.
-- Martin Schulz

#Challenges #Renaissance #Migration

For many people, politics in Brussels and Strasbourg might as well be happening on another planet.
-- Martin Schulz

#People #Might #Planets

Keeping quiet and letting the others do the talking. That may be Angela Merkel's method, but it's not mine.
-- Martin Schulz

#Quiet

It was clear to me that the White House's solemn atmosphere would not civilize Trump. But the merciless nepotism with which he conducts politics, in which he places himself and his family above the law, I wouldn't have considered that possible. And on top of that there is this reduction of complex political decisions to 140 characters. When it comes to a U.S. president, I consider the reduction of politics to a tweet to be truly dangerous. Trump is a risk to his country and the entire world.
-- Martin Schulz

#Country #Character #Decision

I cannot guarantee people absolute fairness. I can only promise that I will do everything in my power to secure fairness or create a greater degree of fairness.
-- Martin Schulz

#People #Promise #Degrees

Primary responsibility for Brexit lies with British conservatives, who took an entire continent hostage.
-- Martin Schulz

#Lying #Responsibility #British

The quota idea is a good one, but there are two problems with it. The first is clear: A quota system would also require all European countries to be prepared to take refugees. And secondly: What happens when the quota has been filled? Would we then simply tell those who are threatened, sorry but we have to send you back?
-- Martin Schulz

#Country #Sorry #Ideas

Britain, Europe's second largest economy, a member of the G-7 and the UN Security Council, wants to leave the EU. That weakens us and it weakens Britain.
-- Martin Schulz

#Europe #Want #Economy

There are surely people in London who would love to play us off against each other. That would be disastrous for the EU.
-- Martin Schulz

#Play #People #Would Be

The problem with us EU politicians is that we approach everything with cool rationality, and then wonder why we don't win people over emotionally.
-- Martin Schulz

#Winning #People #Problem

Donald Trump is not just a problem for the EU, but for the whole world.
-- Martin Schulz

#World #Problem #Trump

Trump has a clear goal: the division of Europe and the destruction of the European domestic market. The fact that Brexit propagandist Nigel Farage was the first European he received in his tower speaks volumes. That is why we must strengthen the European domestic market and work even more closely together in Europe. That is absolutely compulsory for Germany.
-- Martin Schulz

#Europe #Clear Goals #Together

But if you constantly insist only on your own interpretation, it isn't long before it seems patronizing.
-- Martin Schulz

#Long #Interpretation #Patronizing

I'm fully aware that my vision of a European bicameral parliament can't be implemented tomorrow. I'm also not an integration fanatic.
-- Martin Schulz

#Vision #Tomorrow #Parliament

Before we talk about further accessions, we have to consolidate the European Union internally. People are increasingly losing faith in the EU's effectiveness.
-- Martin Schulz

#Effectiveness #People #Unions

I am a man of parliament, a man of the people. I am not a representative of the executives.
-- Martin Schulz

#Men #People #Executives

I'm proud of the fact that Marine Le Pen in France insults me and Geert Wilders in the Netherlands calls me his opponent. The way I see it is, if these people weren't attacking me, I would be doing something wrong.
-- Martin Schulz

#Marine #People #Would Be

Europe was founded as a community bound together by solidarity.
-- Martin Schulz

#Europe #Community #Together

I believe the people should have the opportunity to have a greater influence on politics with their ideas. We need a new impulse for renewal.
-- Martin Schulz

#Believe #Opportunity #Should Have

We have committed ourselves to pursue joint policies, but then national governments say, "We aren't bound by that." That is a dramatic situation, because solidarity is a basic principle that cannot be had on an à la carte basis. If we have rules that nobody adheres to, then the community will break apart.
-- Martin Schulz

#Government #Dramatic Situations #Community

My worry is that Donald Trump may inspire copycats, also in Europe. That's why I hope Hillary Clinton wins.
-- Martin Schulz

#Winning #Europe #Worry

I believe that the majority of people in Europe want to demonstrate solidarity with the refugees.
-- Martin Schulz

#Believe #Europe #People

Now Europe are experiencing a wave of eroding solidarity, first of certain societies and then entire governments. At the same time, we have two giant new challenges to meet: the migration movement and terror. And then Great Britain is thinking about leaving the EU. That should suffice as a description.
-- Martin Schulz

#Thinking #Government #Europe

If you say in advance there is going to be a main candidate and then that doesn't count later, then that's going to be a highly problematic occurrence in a democracy.
-- Martin Schulz

#Democracy #Candidates #Ifs

You have to let the people vote when it comes to a new constitution.
-- Martin Schulz

#People #Vote #Constitution

Without new money, salaries won't be paid, the health system will stop functioning, the power network and public transport will break down, and they won't be able to import vital goods because nobody can pay.
-- Martin Schulz

#Health #Salary #Down And

I firmly believe that the inequity [in society] is enormous. The people have the feeling that you are allowed to do anything if you are rich. But if you're poor, you have to pay. We [Europeans] have to counter this.
-- Martin Schulz

#Believe #People #Feelings

Turkey is doing an enormous amount in the refugee question, but it can't continue to pay for everything by itself. That is why we have to talk to Turkey about money.
-- Martin Schulz

#Turkeys #Pay #Enormous

Things are going well in Germany because the economy is booming and as an export-driven nation, we are profiting from the fact that we have an excellent, high-performing SME sector. But if we want things to continue to go well into the future, then we have to break up the antiquated structures in some areas and really modernize.
-- Martin Schulz

#Economy #Excellent #Break

We need a big debate in society about how we are going to shape Europe and tame capitalism. A government must provide direction and make concrete proposals. It is one of Angela Merkel's biggest failings that she doesn't do this.
-- Martin Schulz

#Debate #Failing #Proposal

The EU is a community of values, not military buildups.
-- Martin Schulz

#Military #Community #Values

Donald Trump has made the principle of purposely breaking a taboo into a means of achieving his political objectives, which is something that he has in common with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Trump systematically violates international rules. But we cannot allow ourselves to forget that Trump is not the U.S.
-- Martin Schulz

#Mean #Political #President

You can't always be demanding solidarity from others and then refuse to show it yourself.
-- Martin Schulz

#Solidarity #Shows #Refuse

The membership survey was a great moment for inner-party democracy. We can't go back, nor do we want to. Our members are pouring their hearts into this campaign. But people don't join the Social Democrats party just to put up posters. They join because they want to help steer the party.
-- Martin Schulz

#Party #Heart #People

It's not attractive at the moment to vouch for the European idea. I still do it, because I believe nothing would be better for our continent.
-- Martin Schulz

#Believe #Ideas #Would Be

In all of my speeches I talk about why a strong Europe is necessary in order for Germany to be strong over the long term. I think that I have sufficiently shown over the past years that I have a clear notion of how we can make Europe stronger, more democratic and more inclusive. There is really no competition there with Sigmar Gabriel.
-- Martin Schulz

#Strong #Thinking #Past

We are seeing now that without the contribution of the Social Democrats, Germany cannot be governed. We are a proud and self-confident party. We should now act based on that pride, and not out of fear.
-- Martin Schulz

#Party #Pride #Proud

I would have oriented myself in case of Donald Trump according to what former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder said to then - U.S. President George W. Bush when the Americans launched a war that was in violation of international law. Schröder showed that a German chancellor can act in a clear and self-confident manner toward a U.S. president.
-- Martin Schulz

#War #President #International Law

For me, respect is an extremely important political term. Since I began campaigning, it has been at the heart of each of my speeches. Many people have the feeling that politicians aren't paying a sufficient amount of attention to them. And then, when the refugees arrived on top of all problems, there was a feeling: You do everything for them, but nothing for us. This mixture of frustration and fear has led to this reaction. That is why it is so important to show these people: We respect you.
-- Martin Schulz

#Heart #Frustration #People

There are certain reactions that you aren't allowed to show in Berlin, for example that you feel offended. If you do, the best-case scenario is a sympathetic article along the lines of: Nice guy, but he's not up to it. The alternative is to don a suit of armor and become cynical. But that's not healthy either: Cynicism is the worst characteristic a politician can have. That's why you have to have an internal balance in Berlin, so you can stay true to yourself. And I have that.
-- Martin Schulz

#Nice #Guy #Cynical

If we no longer judge the content of people's actions, but merely their form, then we are entering dangerous times indeed.
-- Martin Schulz

#People #Judging #Entering

My mother's brother was killed while clearing mines in 1945. Those are things that mark your childhood and they help explain why we are so devoted to European unity.
-- Martin Schulz

#Mother #Brother #Childhood

The principles of the SPD have remained the same for 150 years: democracy, human dignity, justice and inclusion. We will never change those principles.
-- Martin Schulz

#Years #Justice #Democracy

Donald Trump is betraying everything that made America great: tolerance, democratic institutions and respect for the individual. In that sense, Trump is the most un-American U.S. president that the country has had in a long time.
-- Martin Schulz

#Country #Long #Tolerance

Donald Trump is withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement because he wants to lower environmental standards for American products and manufacture more cheaply. His reasoning is quite simple, but very shortsighted. It won't succeed because, by doing so, Trump is missing a golden opportunity to modernize American industry.
-- Martin Schulz

#Opportunity #Simple #Missing

Referendums are a democratic instrument, but so are decisions reached in a parliamentary democracy. I advise extreme caution when it comes to referendums. In Germany too.
-- Martin Schulz

#Decision #Democracy #Germany

When a man ends up in the White House who boasts about not having a clue and who says that specialist knowledge is elite nonsense, then a critical point has been reached. Then you will have an obviously irresponsible man sitting in a position that requires the utmost degree of responsibility.
-- Martin Schulz

#Responsibility #Men #White

If we want to create new rules of globalization, then we can't just think in terms of the nation state. The nation state has long offered protection. But it suffers from the fact that many citizens increasingly fear that it can no longer protect them: The threat of transnational terrorism is growing. Freedom of movement rules in Europe facilitate social dumping. Regardless of the make-up of the next government, it must have clear ideas on how to overcome the lack of direction of recent years.
-- Martin Schulz

#Thinking #Long #Suffering

We're at a historical juncture: A growing number of people are declaring what has been achieved over the past decades in Europe to be wrong. They want to return to the nation-state. Sometimes there is even a blood and soil rhetoric that for me is starkly reminiscent of the interwar years of the past century, whose demons we are still all too familiar with.
-- Martin Schulz

#Past #Blood #Years

CDU head Angela Merkel has tried for years to serve two sides: the conservative side by holding up her CDU party membership. But then at the same time she acts as though she were also a Social Democrat. I don't have this hydra-headed nature. In the end, people will vote for the Social Democratic original.
-- Martin Schulz

#Party #Years #Two Sides

Politics is a dynamic process. When I was a young man in the 1970s, Yasser Arafat had just perpetrated various terrorist attacks. Just a few years later, after I had entered European Parliament, the same Yasser Arafat was given the Nobel Peace Prize.
-- Martin Schulz

#Men #Years #Nobel Peace Prize

We have to engage in a dialogue with Donald Trump because he is the elected president of the United States of America. But we have to emphatically oppose his foreign policy ideas.
-- Martin Schulz

#President #Foreign Policy #Dialogue

Particularly in periods of crisis, governments have the obligation to lead by good example! Instead, many in Europe are confronting this global challenge with a penny-pinching mentality that drives me crazy.
-- Martin Schulz

#Crazy #Government #Europe

Complementing the nation-state as it reaches its limits amid globalization: That is what Europe must offer.
-- Martin Schulz

#Europe #Limits #Globalization

As a party of labor, the SPD must work together with the unions to ensure that people can make a living with their work. That is why I am not a proponent of the concept of unconditional basic income. I am, however, very much in favor of decent wage agreements, secure and lasting jobs, employee participation in decision-making and the examination of the social justification for claims and payments.
-- Martin Schulz

#Jobs #Party #Agreement

The vast majority of people support the idea of an enlightened, modern union of countries demonstrating solidarity. Film director Wim Wenders recently summed up the problem to me very well. He said the idea of Europe has become an administration, and now people think that the administration is the idea. But that doesn't mean we should give up on the idea - it means we should change the administration.
-- Martin Schulz

#Country #Giving Up #Mean

Imagine a German as president of the European Commission. If he or she goes to some particular country and says do this or that, it won't be very well received. The president quickly ends up being the evil German. But if the president is elected by and controlled by 700 representatives from all EU countries, that legitimizes him or her in a very different way.
-- Martin Schulz

#Country #Evil #President

We are living through an epochal shift. If we aren't careful, the elementary foundations of our pluralistic democracy will be threatened.
-- Martin Schulz

#Democracy #Foundation #Careful

I am critical of the fact that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is pulling out of everything - the joint approach to the refugee issue, for example. He cannot disparage his colleagues in the EU either - that's not how we treat each other. We require solidarity: in refugee policies, just as in the financial architecture of the structural funds from which countries like Hungary have strongly profited from for years.
-- Martin Schulz

#Country #Years #Issues

Political leaders need to formulate long-term EU goals that show: Yes, we want to stay together.
-- Martin Schulz

#Long #Goal #Leader

European policy is always an interplay of rationality and emotion.
-- Martin Schulz

#Emotion #Policy #Rationality

In the days before the vote, I bet that the British would stay in the EU.
-- Martin Schulz

#Vote #British

Refugees cost us money too when they come to us. If we improve their living conditions in Turkey, we create an incentive for them to stay there and not to place their fates in the hands of smugglers.
-- Martin Schulz

#Fate #Hands #Turkeys

I believe it is wrong to give Moscow a rebate on Ukraine sanctions because of Syria.
-- Martin Schulz

#Believe #Ukraine #Giving

We all have to accept accusations that we ignored the refugee crisis for far too long. The first time that I referred to the Mediterranean Sea as Europe's cemetery was in October 2013, when hundreds of people drowned off Lampedusa. Italians, Maltese, Greeks and Spaniards have been pleading for help for years. But nobody cared.
-- Martin Schulz

#Refugee Crisis #Years #Europe

The question of societal fairness is always pertinent.
-- Martin Schulz

#Fairness #Pertinent

Donald Trump must be taken seriously. He is fulfilling his dangerous campaign promises.
-- Martin Schulz

#Taken #Promise #Campaigns

The racist rhetoric that extends all the way to the top of the AfD shows that one must assume that an attitude is prevalent - not just in the grassroots, but also among party leadership - that is not consistent with the basic values reflected in our constitution.
-- Martin Schulz

#Attitude #Party #Racist

I know people's problems: the problems of those who work hard, who must slave away. The couples who have two incomes but who can nevertheless barely cover their rent. The people who get stuck in traffic on their way to work. The people who have to wait in vain for a train to come just as they are supposed to be picking up their children from daycare. I can say with a clear conscience to those people: I understand your problems. And I will do all I can to decrease them.
-- Martin Schulz

#Children #Couple #Hard Work

Gerhard Schröder offered a clear German NEIN to an American president's war of aggression that was in violation of international law. That took courage. Ms. Merkel did not join him at the time. If Trump now begins to take the wrecking ball to our set of values, we must say clearly: That is not our approach.
-- Martin Schulz

#War #Law #President

It became obvious that we had completely failed to impose rules on unbridled speculative capitalism. That destroyed financial systems, hollowed out state systems and deeply shook German social stability. Can you recall the debate about "locust" hedge funds - even if it's a terrible term. The speculator capitalists roamed the land, stealing the substance from companies and throwing away the shells. And we were powerless.
-- Martin Schulz

#Financial #Debate #Stealing

It is impossible to swear an oath to the German Basic Law without realizing that our constitution is among the most liberal constitutions in the world. As the head of government in such a country, I would stand up to all those who call into question this free, open and tolerant model of society.
-- Martin Schulz

#Country #Government #Law

Trump is the freely elected president of the U.S. and as such deserves respect.
-- Martin Schulz

#President #Trump #Deserve

I want to end tax dumping. States that have a common currency should not be engaged in tax competition. We need a minimum tax rate and a European finance minister, who would be responsible for closing the tax loopholes and getting rid of the tax havens inside and outside the EU. It is also clear that we have to reach common standards in our economic and labor policies. We cannot continue to just talk about technical details. We have to inspire enthusiasm in Germany for Europe.
-- Martin Schulz

#Competition #Inspire #Enthusiasm

France is ready for a European revolution and it is Germany that is pulling the brakes. For a long time, it was the other way around. You don't have to agree with the details of every single one of Emmanuel Macron's suggestions, but he's right about the idea of a new foundation of Europe. Europe's Social Democrats have long demanded this. If we really want to, we can create a different, better Europe in the coming years.
-- Martin Schulz

#Long #Different #Revolution

I really don't have time at the moment for coalition debates. The voters will decide what the next parliament will look like. Those who wish to form a coalition with The Social Democrats can take a look at our platform and then they are more than welcome to talk to us.
-- Martin Schulz

#Wish #Welcome #Debate

Ms. Merkel is avoiding retirement issues. She simply doesn't want to do anything, although she knows that doing nothing means that real pensions will fall. That is preprogrammed old-age poverty. When it comes to wage fairness: It was Ms. Merkel herself who blocked the establishment of a right to return to a fulltime job after going part time for a period. Yet everyone keeps saying that our platform is identical to that of the conservatives. It's crazy.
-- Martin Schulz

#Retirement #Real #Crazy

The Social Democrats have to listen to people who are attracted to the AfD party. That isn't a mistake at all. You can also win them back. Of course, there are a lot of angry voters who are ideologically charged. But there are also a lot of quieter voters who plan on voting AfD to send a message. We can never give up on them.
-- Martin Schulz

#Giving Up #Mistake #Party

We need a comprehensive renewal of the nursing care system in Germany, and quickly. The two-tier medical system must be abolished. Patients with public health insurance are waiting months to be seen by a specialist doctor, while doctors increasingly give priority to privately insured patients. That's unacceptable. We also need an educational revolution. Medicine, nursing care, education: Germany is not a modern country when it comes to these three areas. We have to adapt our policies to the social reality. These are projects that can awaken Germany out of its torpor.
-- Martin Schulz

#Country #Educational #Nursing

I am strictly against making cuts in the current budgetary period for things such as research funding and investments as a reaction to Brexit. I think that we can do an excellent job of explaining this to the German people.
-- Martin Schulz

#Cutting #Thinking #People

In 2003, Helmut Schmidt said: Predatory capitalism exists, we have to civilize it and we can do that via Europe. He was right. We haven't tried hard enough.
-- Martin Schulz

#Enough #Capitalism

I have no illusions. Of course, Russia is massively upgrading its military. We know that Russia is pursuing a policy of expansion. This is of course a cause for concern among Eastern European countries.
-- Martin Schulz

#Country #Military #Illusion

One of the richest and largest markets in the world, Europe can set global standards. And if a French president is prepared to at least consider clear rules in the Eurozone, then it would be fatal if Germany were not to react.
-- Martin Schulz

#President #World

If we want to strengthen the EU, then we urgently need a two-pronged approach. First, we can save a lot of money if we finally move to harness synergy effects in military spending. The parallel structures in the individual armies still remain far too costly, and we could save a lot by making joint purchases. Second, we cannot only think in terms of conventional military logic, but instead have to be far better prepared to thwart cyberattacks. Most importantly, we can no longer allow the EU to become bogged down in petty details.
-- Martin Schulz

#Military #Moving #Army

I still hope that the American system of checks and balances will ultimately prevent this man, Donald Trump, with his erratic political style, from jeopardizing our European security architecture.
-- Martin Schulz

#Men #Political #Style

We need a common European tax policy that closes these tax loopholes. We need a common European social policy that prevents social dumping. We need an effective securing of our external borders and a smart way of fighting terrorism. Acting as a state within a national framework is no longer enough. The German chancellor has completely failed to convey that throughout her years in power. We need a re-start for Europe.
-- Martin Schulz

#Smart #Fighting #Acting

We Germans are particularly aware that you can only be successful on the global market over the long term if you offer energy-efficient products that are, by nature, climate-friendly.
-- Martin Schulz

#Successful #Long #Term

If Merkel has discovered Europe in a beer tent, I can only say: better late than never. Otherwise, it was the height of hypocrisy: The chancellor sat down for a beer with CSU Chairman Horst Seehofer, the man who after the election praised Donald Trump as a very resolute man.
-- Martin Schulz

#Beer #Men #Hypocrisy

It is courageous to occasionally admit that there are certain things one can't do.
-- Martin Schulz

#Courageous #Certain

The dangerous glorification of the nation state, and the baiting of minorities that goes along with it, releases an anti-democratic energy.
-- Martin Schulz

#Energy #Minorities #Release

You can be sure that I won't experiment with right-wing terms.
-- Martin Schulz

#Wings #Term #Right Wing