VERSPRECHUNGEN & KONZESSIONEN

Parteiführer/Minister hat die Wahlversprechungen eingehalten = the party leader honored/delivered on his election pledges/promises; the minister walked the talk on many key issues; the MP lived up to his hype/reputation; I admire politicians who bring home the bacon 

Politiker steht in der Pflicht/muss nun liefern = politician has to get her/his act together/lift her/his game/must deliver now; the country is counting on (name of politician) to step up and help solve this crisis, which has been raging now for months  

manche Parteien/Politiker vertreten unumwunden die Interessen wichtiger Branchen, wie z. B. der Autoindustrie  = some political parties/MP’s keep on pandering to the whims of key industry heavyweights, such as the automobile sector     

Parteien sind bestrebt, einen Konsens für die Einwanderungspolitik zu finden = parties attempt to smooth over the disagreements on immigration policy

das war ein sehr guter Schachzug vom Politiker = politician’s stunt was second to none

dies war nur ein Vorgeschmack auf das, was uns noch bevorsteht  = it is/was just a taste of what’s to come

wieder mal leere Versprechungen, die nicht eingehalten werden = the party didn’t uphold its end of the bargain; sometimes politicians don’t walk/talk the talk; the party failed to follow through on the promise/pledge of cutting taxes; it’s just the usual tough talking before the election; don’t lean on all these hollow promises/pledges; the minister statements ring/sound hollow/seem to be on the edge of believevability 

Politiker können geschickt ablenken/leugnen legitime Fakten/verweigern die Realität zu akzeptieren =  politicians are adept at diverting attention from letting the tail wag the dog on the real issues; politicians very often don’t tell, or are not willing/prepared to accept an unpleasant truth and thus remain/live in (total) denial/at the denial game; the housing minister should fix the looming problems and stop fishing for red herrings (i.e. draw attention away from  the real topic); the recent speech of the Prime Minister was merely  a red herring as he actually tried to mislead the whole nation; politician does a vanishing/disappearing trick/act; in a way the minister’s reaction smacked of sheer desperation 

auf die Versprechungen der Politiker soll man sich nicht verlassen  = don’t lean/rely too much on politicians promises; some politicians are famous for making – and breaking - promises 

anstatt sich auf Samtpfoten ins Herz konservativer Wähler zu schleichen, sollten manche Politiker endlich mal richtig klotzen =  some politicians should get down to business big time and stop pussyfooting around/dilly-dallying/dawdling

Politiker poltert los/vor sich hin, haut auf den Tisch, aber es alles nur Palaver = it’s all bluster, yelling, flailing and thumping the table but little substance; some politicians like to shoot off their mouths 

als die Opposition den Versuch unternahm, die Regierung vor sich her zu treiben, ergriff der Präsident/der Kanzler die Flucht nach vorne = in the face of heavy criticism by the opposition, the president decided to address/tackle/face up to the problem head-on; the ex-president was accused of jumping the shark when he said that the previous election, which he didn’t win, was stolen; the prime minister preempted/defused/deflected massive criticism by staying in attack mode as he doubled down on his plans to boost the country’s ailing road infrastructure; as the opposition ramped up the pressure on the government the president/prime minister suddenly rushed to the offensive when he quickly greenlighted/ acted on the tax cuts after all, beating his detractors to the punch in the process 

mit seinem Geständnis hat der diskreditierte Minister einer härteren Strafe den Wind aus den Segeln genommen = the embattled minister preempted harsher punishment when he owned up to the corruption charges 

Regierung weist Behauptung der Opposition zurück = the government strongly countered/pushed back on the opposition’s claim of failing to act in a timely manner during the pandemic crisis   

das ist eine Mogelpackung/Verdummung = that was a miscarriage of law/of the Constitution; "consider it (e.g. the new law/verdict) a travesty of the truth/of justice", the leader of the opposition said; the motion is a poor excuse for action/an elaborate fraud/band-aid package; the tax breaks proved to be nothing short of a travesty; "the updated amendment reminds me of a con job/trick full of smoke and mirrors", said a journalist familiar with the matter; the act/ bill/law is a farce/mockery/joke/hollow package; this is an aberration; the newspaper editorial made a mockery of the government’s intentions to hike/ramp up taxes