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Article: Kohl Concedes Unity Linked to Tax Rise;Opposition Cheers Chancellor's Reversal
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- September 19, 1990
- Author:
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Copyright informationThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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After months of promising that no new taxes will be required to
pay for German unification, Chancellor Helmut Kohl has changed his
mind.
Riding high in the polls 10 weeks before the first all-German
elections in 57 years, Kohl conceded publicly what his staff has
admitted privately all summer and his challenger has argued all
year-that restructuring the East German economy will cost far more
than expected.
Strategists in the chancellor's Christian Democratic Union said
today that Kohl read the lips of a public that never believed his "no
new taxes" promise, but is prepared to reelect him anyway.
Christian Democratic leader Volker Ruehe said his party still
opposes a tax increase, but ...