Habeck and the Greens: You won't get it, old man!

Robert Habeck said a sentence in October that has survived the turn of the century.

It would be a "step joke of history" if the Greens, who wanted to expect so much from society, were not willing to expect something from themselves.

In doing so, the then Greens chairman campaigned for his party to start coalition negotiations with the SPD and FDP.

The Greens agreed, although they could not enforce a speed limit or wealth tax.

Those were the green impertinences back then.

Since Russia's attack on Ukraine, the impositions have taken on other dimensions: arms deliveries to the war zone, a hundred billion euros for the German armed forces, energy contracts with Qatar, coal-fired power plants are to run longer and probably also the nuclear power plants, at least there are some indications that the Greens agree to stretching operations .

These are tough decisions, so far the base has supported them.

Where government aid ends

The Greens didn't start well in the coalition, they licked their wounds after the botched election campaign, afforded undignified bickering about posts.

But the party understood that green navel-gazing would be a really bad joke in wartime.

The impositions on society result less from the Green election program than from the war and its consequences.

If solidarity isn't just an empty phrase, then it also hurts at times.

You could even say it starts where it hurts.

The debate is currently mainly about relief, Chancellor Scholz has just announced the third package.

Habeck accentuates things a little differently, he not only talks about cushioning, but also about the fact that state aid has limits.

"People shouldn't have to ask themselves what they're getting," says Habeck, "but they should do it because they feel like living in this country, because they feel pride and joy in doing something for others." Thought is harsh, but the phrase sounds blissfully Kennedy.

Are there financial incentives to save gas?

"If someone says I'll only do it if I get 50 euros, I'd say: You won't get it, old man." The Vice Chancellor pointed out that the freezer compartment should be defrosted and the shower head changed.

He himself, he said, does not like being in air-conditioned rooms and has never showered for more than five minutes.

Never again ban party

The call for renunciation marks an interesting turn in green self-expression.

Up until the federal elections, the party leadership had worked hard to get rid of the ban party label.

Never again suggest something like a "Veggie Day" was the motto, people didn't want to be educated.

The red line was where the interference in private life began.

That's why Habeck said that he sometimes buys from discounters, drinks canned beer on vacation and likes to drive faster than 120 km/h on the motorway.

In the election program, this became the formula: The task is to create better rules, not better people.

Nobody should feel bad.

This could not be thought through to the end without contradiction.

If the climate crisis is as bad as the Greens say, it can't be good to throw a dozen neck steaks on the charcoal grill.

The call to take a short shower can be seen as encroaching, but it is consistent.

Habeck is currently doing well with it.

He leads the list of the most popular politicians by a clear margin, followed by two other Greens, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and Agriculture Minister Cem Özdemir.

Polls see the Greens stable at more than twenty percent.

But the Greens know from experience how quickly that can change.

When the cold days begin, it becomes dangerous for the Greens and especially for Habeck.

He got a taste of it when he was recently booed and hissed at during public appearances.

If you can't heat your apartment, you want to hear something other than "can't you get it".

SPD and FDP build ahead

The Vice Chancellor cannot expect any support from the SPD and FDP.

Both coalition partners have too many problems of their own, including the strength of the Greens.

They would not hesitate to offload the blame for an energy shortage on Habeck.

Olaf Scholz is already building.

Does he have shower tips for the Germans?

"Nope."

Whether and to what extent the Greens are prepared for this danger can be seen from how the nuclear debate continues.

Shutting down the last pile at the end of the year would be an open flank that you cannot risk given the uncertain supply situation.

It is about proving "whether we are a mature party capable of governing this country," Habeck said in October.

That also still applies now.