TV column “Maischberger” - When the topic of migration is discussed in an ARD talk show, the old Greens suddenly lose their nerve

The federal election is over. It's time for those who always wanted to know everything in advance. And of course: Sandra Maischberger is happy to give them her hour of airtime. If they think about Germany at night, the ARD reliably keeps viewers awake at midnight.

The journalist Gabor Steingart prophesies about the "forced marriage" of the CDU/CSU and SPD. At the same time, however, he argues against the talk of the AfD's apocalypse for our country. And he takes the opportunity to remind us that 85 percent of Germans did not vote for this far-right party. To arrive at this result, he prefers to add the non-voters to the total.

So this night we are still swinging between dream and nightmare. 350,000 people sign for Robert Habeck so that the former economics minister can still keep an important office. The pendulum is already swinging clearly in one direction. It is getting worse.

The active politicians are still recovering from the election campaign or sorting themselves out for the time afterwards. So we are seeing two old politicians. Jürgen Trittin, 70, meets Wolfgang Bosbach, 72. His daughter Caroline won her constituency against Christian Lindner. She is only 35. But that much youthfulness is not on ARD's camera this evening.

The senior citizens' meeting is still the case. This is the first time since 1983 that Trittin has not campaigned. "That was easy for me," he assures us. And when he was tempted, he gave a reading from his book. Trittin also managed to advertise his own cause. So he has economic expertise, at least in his own cause.

"Ah," adds Trittin, "we're ripped off. It was a year of 'bad governance'." Bad government, then, he says of the last year of the traffic light coalition. They effectively stopped governing. He doesn't think the Greens themselves are to blame for their defeat. "The deeper causes lie in the traffic light coalition," he says, explaining the loss of voters.

"We were very late in addressing the Greens' core issue," adds the former Greens' environment minister on the subject of climate. "If you want to prevent the rise of the right wing..." he begins in a big way. And then he goes on to say that we need to govern better. That is so banal that he can get 100 percent approval.

The failed Green candidate Robert Habeck received sympathy from the CDU this evening. "I can imagine how things are going for Robert Habeck now. He cannot absolve himself of his responsibility for the disastrous election result," says Wolfgang Bosbach.

Of course, the CDU politician is not happy with his own election result either. "You don't have to stab a campaigner in the back," he complains about former Chancellor Angela Merkel and her criticism of her future successor and old rival Friedrich Merz.

The viewer's gain in knowledge is limited. "I'm not a supporter of the Union," says Trittin. This is really not surprising for the old Green. He then sits for a long time with his arms folded and remains wisely silent. When he ends his silence, he becomes venomous.

The issue of migration is not that important to him, as there are much more important issues. However, he feels that journalists were not interested enough in the issue during the election campaign. He does not mention the word "climate", but he is very direct with Sandra Maischberger. "I know that you don't see it that way," he attacks the presenter. He does not provide a reason for this attack. So Trittin ends his TV evening not as a teacher, but as a master of emptiness.

And how does the ARD talk show end? "Do you sleep well?" the moderator asks Carlo Masala at the very end. The professor at the Bundeswehr University in Munich has just drawn up scenarios for nuclear defense and portrayed Germany as a transit area for a Russian army. Just like in the almost forgotten Cold War. "I always sleep well," he assures us. We can only congratulate him on that.