Review

The rude gauge

Growth king, or work-war idiot?

A fun barometer of who grows the pie and who picks a fight with work itself. Six axes, a needle, and a causal chain from the structural crack to the likely landing. Editorial — not a court.

Cabinet average

53

Schwarz-Rot on the growth–idiot scale. 100 is king. 0 is a war on work.

Work-war idiotMixed bagGrowth king

Builders sit right. Work-war sits left. The July package nudged this number. Housing and corporate tax are what would move it.

WK

The reading

Wolfgang Kubicki

FDP leader

Growth king80/100
Work-war idiotGrowth kingGrowth king

Classic liberal instinct, zero levers. Easy to be a growth king from opposition with 4%.

King move

Still the party that would cut corporate tax this year, not in 2029.

Work-war move

The Ampel debt-brake contradiction was also an FDP co-production.

Six axes

  • Energy8/10
    Dear powerCheap power
  • Hiring9/10
    Afraid to hireEasy to hire
  • Capital9/10
    Tax it outLet it land
  • Building6/10
    No cranesCranes up
  • Hours7/10
    Pay people to leaveKeep people in work
  • Red tape9/10
    Gold-plate itCut the form

Causal chains

Editorial economic-competence gauge, not a court and not a Nobel. Six axes: energy, hiring, capital, building, hours in work, red tape. Scores are a judgement from public records of this term and the last — not a bribery charge, not a voting recommendation.

Snapshot of the 21st Bundestag and public reporting through 10 Sep 2026. Live wires: Tagesschau, Spiegel, ZEIT, Bundesregierung, Bundestag RSS, plus Grok search of 20 politician accounts and 20 news desks on X. Each news item is tagged for topic, tone, and who the frame helps. Money tab uses disclosed Grosspenden, the lobby register, LobbyControl and DonationWatch — not a bribery verdict. King tab is an editorial growth vs work-war gauge with causal chains — not a Nobel. Not a voting recommendation.