Germany megathread

[President Johnson]

Justice minister Marco Buschmann (FDP) has issued the most scathing reply to Markus Söder' refusal to implement the vaccine mandate for medical and nursing personnel: "Under the rule of law the laws apply. When the governing are choosing for themselves which laws they are following and which they are not tyranny is not far behind."

Meanwhile, evidence amounts that even Söder's refusal is just talk and no action again, considering that his health minister has assured that the implementation of the vaccine mandate in Bavaria will only be minimally delayed.

It's still interesting that a bunch of CDU politicians including Merz backed Söder's stance, just shortly after the Union voted in favor of the vaccine mandate for medical personell.

CDU as junior partner in Baden-Württemberg's government also wanted to do the same, but Minister-President Kretschmann essentially vetoed such a move. After consultations between Greens and CDU, the latter largely backed off.

[President Johnson]

After nearly 20 years, CDU Leader Friedrich Merz is now also back as leader of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group. He was elected with 162 out of 186 votes. He already held the post from 2000 to 2002, before he was pushed aside by Angela Merkel following the 2002 federal election, causing a long time feud between them.

Merz said he intends "constructive and critical opposition". However, he was unusually ease on foreign policy, saying he supports the Scholz government's diplomatic efforts to deescalate the conflict in Ukraine.

[Astatine]

In an interview with SPIEGEL, SPD parliamentary leader Rolf Mützenich called Vladimir Putin an "autistic decision maker" with an "obsession for history". Ough

[MaxQue]

Did the SDP ever banned Schroder from party membership and will they ever do?

[Middle-aged Europe]

Did the SDP ever banned Schroder from party membership and will they ever do?

Party expulsions in Germany are a long-winded and messy procedural business that never seem to go anywhere. In light of recent, um, "events" the SPD has started to get more impatient with him though. There has been some talk of at least suspending him.

[Middle-aged Europe]

I expect the first real post-invasion polling data tomorrow btw. ARD Deutschlandtrend is due. I expect all of you to be in awe.

I think majorities for delivering weapons to Ukraine and increasing the defense budget are possible across all parties except the Left and the AfD (but the slimmest of the majorities might be detected in the SPD, I suppose).

[It’s so Joever]

In an interview with SPIEGEL, SPD parliamentary leader Rolf Mützenich called Vladimir Putin an "autistic decision maker" with an "obsession for history". Ough

I didn’t know Putin was on Atlas!

[Middle-aged Europe]

Here it comes....


Is Ukraine a trustworthy partner for Germany?
Yes 63%
No 20%

Is the United States a trustworthy partner for Germany?
Yes 60%
No 31%

Is China a trustworthy partner for Germany?
Yes 9%
No 82%

Is Russia a trustworthy partner for Germany?
Yes 6%
No 90%


Reaction of the German government to the Russian invasion is...
Going too far 14%
Appropriate 53%
Not going far enough 27%

Expelling Russian banks from SWIFT
Agree 82%
Disagree 13%

Deploying German forces to NATO countries in Eastern Europe
Agree 68%
Disagree 24%

Stopping the licensing procedure for Nord Stream 2
Agree 67%
Disagree 24%

Spending 100 billion Euros for modernization of German forces
Agree 65%
Disagree 27%

Sending German weapons to Ukraine
Agree 61%
Disagree 31%


Do you support sanctions against Russia even if...

...it leads to energy shortages.
Yes 68%
No 25%

...it leads to increased energy prices and cost of living.
Yes 66%
No 26%

...German companies suffer disadvantages from it.
Yes 65%
No 26%


Infratest dimap for ARD Deutschlandtrend, Feb. 28-March 2.


First part, I will continue this immediately in the next post.

[Middle-aged Europe]

Concerns after the Russian invasion of Ukraine

About the people in Ukraine
Very great / great 89%
Little / none 10%

That Ukraine will be completely occupied by Russia
Very great / great 77%
Little / none 17%

That Russia will attack other European countries
Very great / great 69%
Little / none 29%

That there will be another great war in Europe
Very great / great 69%
Little / none 29%

That there will be energy and gas shortages in Germany
Very great / great 66%
Little / none 32%

That the economic situation in Germany will worsen
Very great / great 64%
Little / none 33%


NATO is important to secure peace in Europe
Agree 83%
Disagree 11%

Germany was too lenient with Putin in recent years
Agree 68%
Disagree 23%

In the long-term Ukraine should be admitted to the EU
Agree 63%
Disagree 26%

I don't think that the sanctions will change Russia's policies
Agree 52%
Disagree 39%

German government waited too long with military support
Agree 45%
Disagree 46%

Accepting Ukrainian refugees in Germany
Agree 91%
Disagree 5%

Support for accepting Ukraining refugees in Germany by party
Greens 99%
Left 97%
CDU/CSU 96%
SPD 95%
FDP 94%
AfD 68%


Infratest dimap for ARD Deutschlandtrend, Feb. 28-March 2.

[Middle-aged Europe]

Same poll, usual question: How would you vote?

CDU/CSU 26% (-1)
SPD 25% (+3)
Greens 16% (+-0)
AfD 11% (-1)
FDP 9% (-1)
Left 5% (+/-0)


German government approval rating

Strongly approve 6% (+4)
Approve 50% (+14)
Disapprove 26% (-9)
Strongly disapprove 15% (-7)

[President Johnson]

Chancellor Olaf Scholz just called for Gerhard Schröder to resign from Russian corporate boards on Live TV. The guy is an embarrassment at this point. Glad Genosse Olaf is speaking out now.

[Anzeigenhauptmeister]

Did the SDP ever banned Schroder from party membership and will they ever do?

The chapter in Heidelberg moved (or shall I say: put in) for an exclusion of Schröder from the SPD.
I'd really like to translate this article for you, but according to PUTP my English is too "non-understandable", thus I'll let someone else do the work for me. 🤷🏼‍♂️

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

In an interview with SPIEGEL, SPD parliamentary leader Rolf Mützenich called Vladimir Putin an "autistic decision maker" with an "obsession for history". Ough

I didn’t know Putin was on Atlas!

He has an Alabama avatar and is currently muted from IGD.

[Middle-aged Europe]

The SPD has removed Gerhard Schröder from the list of 34 33 "great social democrats" on its website.

It still includes the party's other two post-WWII Chancellors, Willy Brandt and Helmut Schmidt, as well as its two former post-WWII presidents, Gustav Heinemann and Johannes Rau.

https://www.spd.de/partei/#c75389

[President Johnson]

A lawsuit by the AfD against potential surveillance by authorities was dismissed. Good decision.

https://twitter.com/dw_politics/status/1501469334467661825

[Middle-aged Europe]

Another post-invasion poll has been released (conducted March 8-10), this time by ZDF Politbarometer/Forschungsgruppe Wahlen.


Opinion of economic sanctions against Russia
Appropriate 47%
Not going far enough 38%
Going too far 11%

Opinion of German arms shipments (missiles, RPGs etc.) to Ukraine
Support 67%
Oppose 29%

Opinion of extending arms shipments to heavier weapon systems like tanks
Support 31%
Oppose 63%


Should Germany stop gas and oil imports from Russia because of the war?
Yes 55%
No 39%

"Yes" responses broken down by parties
Greens 73%
SPD 62%
CDU/CSU 56%
FDP 40%
Left 33%
AfD 22%


How to secure Germany's energy supply?

Speeding up the expansion of renewable energies
Support 92%
Oppose 7%

Extending the lifespan of nuclear power plants
Support 57%
Oppose 41%

Extending the lifespan of coal plants
Support 56%
Oppose 41%


Are you concerned a great war in Europe will happen?
Yes 75%
No 24%

Are you concerned that Vladimir Putin will use nuclear weapons?
Yes 67%
No 31%


How would you vote?
SPD 27% (+1)
CDU/CSU 24% (+/-0)
Greens 18% (+1)
AfD 10% (-1)
FDP 9% (+/-0)
Left 5% (-1)

Government approval rate: 75% (+11)
Olaf Scholz approval rate: 73% (+8)

Individual job ratings (on a scale of +5 to -5)
Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD): 1.9 (+0.5)
Economy minister Robert Habeck (Greens): 1.6 (+0.4)
Health minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD): 1.4 (+0.1)
Foreign minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens): 1.4 (+1.0)
Baden-Württembergian minister-president Winfried Kretschmann (Greens): 1.3 (+0.1)
Finance minister Christian Lindner (FDP): 1.1 (+0.3)
Agriculture minister Cem Özdemir (Greens): 1.0 (-0.2)
CDU chairman Friedrich Merz: 0.4 (+0.3)
CSU chairman Markus Söder: 0.3 (+0.1)
Former Left caucus leader Sahra Wagenknecht: -1.0 (-0.3)

[Antonio the Sixth]

The SPD has removed Gerhard Schröder from the list of 34 33 "great social democrats" on its website.

It still includes the party's other two post-WWII Chancellors, Willy Brandt and Helmut Schmidt, as well as its two former post-WWII presidents, Gustav Heinemann and Johannes Rau.

https://www.spd.de/partei/#c75389

He should be expelled from the party.

[Middle-aged Europe]

The SPD has removed Gerhard Schröder from the list of 34 33 "great social democrats" on its website.

It still includes the party's other two post-WWII Chancellors, Willy Brandt and Helmut Schmidt, as well as its two former post-WWII presidents, Gustav Heinemann and Johannes Rau.

https://www.spd.de/partei/#c75389

He should be expelled from the party.

The way party expulsion procedures work in Germany that would happen in about ten years though. The SPD could of course initiate the party expulsion, that's something that could be done now.

[Antonio the Sixth]

The SPD has removed Gerhard Schröder from the list of 34 33 "great social democrats" on its website.

It still includes the party's other two post-WWII Chancellors, Willy Brandt and Helmut Schmidt, as well as its two former post-WWII presidents, Gustav Heinemann and Johannes Rau.

https://www.spd.de/partei/#c75389

He should be expelled from the party.

The way party expulsion procedures work in Germany that would happen in about ten years though. The SPD could of course initiate the party expulsion, that's something that could be done now.

lmao, Germany is so weird about party rules

But anyway yes, at least start the procedure.

[Middle-aged Europe]

Oskar Lafontaine has left the Left Party (pun intended) now. The SPD just wishes they had the same kind of luck with Gerhard Schröder. Four local SPD chapters have filed for his expulsion though.

[President Johnson]

Oskar Lafontaine has left the Left Party (pun intended) now. The SPD just wishes they had the same kind of luck with Gerhard Schröder. Four local SPD chapters have filed for his expulsion though.

Hopefully this is the final nail in his party's confin. It's too bad they weren't thrown out of the Bundestag already with 4.9%, just surviving by winning three districts. Anyway, Lafontaine was never really a teamplayer.

[Anzeigenhauptmeister]

https://twitter.com/wirthstef/status/1507011521406070796


https://twitter.com/dw_culture/status/1507092890866135055

[President Johnson]

Very much looks like the entire antisemitism accusation against a hotel in Berlin that caused international outrage was made up by Gil Ofarim. Investigators found his claims not believeable after several interviews and even replaying the scene. The guy is now charged for the false claim.

https://twitter.com/dwnews/status/1509580784155385862

[Yeahsayyeah]

Very much looks like the entire antisemitism accusation against a hotel in Berlin that caused international outrage was made up by Gil Ofarim. Investigators found his claims not believeable after several interviews and even replaying the scene. The guy is now charged for the false claim.

https://twitter.com/dwnews/status/1509580784155385862

Small correction, it was a hotel in Leipzig, which fed the "Saxony is the worst state in Germany and is comprised entirely of Nazis" narrative we all love so much.

[CumbrianLefty]

Very much looks like the entire antisemitism accusation against a hotel in Berlin that caused international outrage was made up by Gil Ofarim. Investigators found his claims not believeable after several interviews and even replaying the scene. The guy is now charged for the false claim.

https://twitter.com/dwnews/status/1509580784155385862

Small correction, it was a hotel in Leipzig, which fed the "Saxony is the worst state in Germany and is comprised entirely of Nazis" narrative we all love so much.

There have been "fake" incidents like this before involving anti-Black racism or Islamophobia, but this is the first I can recall regarding AS. Always pretty shocking when it is proven to have happened.