Surprising turnaround

Last Lugner interview: “Trump poison for Europe!”

Richard Lugner also lashed out against Trump in his last "Krone" interview in July.(Bild: Holl Reinhard)

28 days before his death, Conny Bischofberger conducted the last interview with Richard Lugner. The topic was also the US elections. Surprising confession from the former Trump fan: he would vote for Kamala Harris because Trump is poison for Europe.

It was Wednesday, July 24, three days after Joe Biden had withdrawn his presidential candidacy for health reasons. The convalescent party animal gave an interview to "Krone" - it was to be his last, as Lugner died 28 days later.

Lugner: "Simone likes her too"
The conversation also focused on the US elections. Lugner, 10 years older than Biden, talked about his heart operation and fitness in old age. And made a surprising confession.

He raved about Kamala Harris, who succeeded Biden as the Democratic presidential candidate. "I think she's doing very well. Simone likes her too, she'll give Trump a run for his money."

"She was Attorney General and is very cheerful": Lugner on US presidential candidate Kamala Harris.(Bild: APA/AFP/GETTY IMAGES/TASOS KATOPODIS)

Austria's Trump "still a compliment at first"
When asked about the fact that he was once a hardcore Trump fan, Lugner said that he had long since distanced himself from Trump in his mind. "I was called the Austrian Trump at the beginning of my career," he grinned, "that was a compliment at first because it looked like he was a successful businessman. But in reality, Trump has gone bankrupt several times." In hindsight, he sees the fact that he took a stand for him several times as a "warning shot".

Lugner unusually political
If he were eligible to vote in the USA today (Lugner has a daughter from a relationship with actress Sonja Jeannine Cutter and is a family court judge in the USA), he would vote for Kamala Harris. "She was Attorney General and is even cheerful," said Lugner approvingly.

For him, Trump is a pure showman. "And then he did things that are absurd! He canceled the nuclear agreement with Iran and threatened that America would withdraw from NATO," said an unusually political Lugner. "That's why Trump is poison for Europe!"

Simone "like Kämela, she wears the pants too"
Lugner's wife Simone Lugner said after his death that her husband had already fancied Kamala Harris when Biden was still in office. "He always said: Pamela should do it! He meant Kamala, but he wasn't really into names."

They often talked about the styling of the Democratic Vice President. And because she also likes to wear trouser suits herself, he often said: "Like Kämela, she wears pants too."