Suddenly, the Green Party leader is asked in a summer interview: “Do you also have a problem with the fatherland?”

"What comes after the Habeck era?" – In a summer interview on Das Erste, the new Green Party leader, Felix Banaszak, attempts to answer the question, but quickly reaches his limits. He wants to listen, he says. For this reason, he decided to tour East Germany. By train. But where new clarity is promised, all too often the same old vagueness remains.

Following an incendiary letter from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania in which local Green politicians reported threats and violence, Banaszak launched a "visibility offensive." In a conversation with moderator Matthias Deiß, however, he quickly stated: "I am a child, from deep in the west of Germany. " Nevertheless, he doesn't want to give up on the east without a fight and wants to "get a foot in the door." While there is a certain basic openness regarding eastern Germany, the Green Party leader, in typical Green fashion, remains tight-lipped on the issue of deportation flights.

Deportation flights do not make the country safer, says Banaszak.

Deportation flights to Afghanistan: Yes or no? Banaszak isn't ready to commit. Should criminals be deported or kept here? "Once they're in prison, they're no longer a threat," says the Green Party leader. A symbolic deportation won't help. Quite the opposite. With its deportation flights, the German government is supporting the Taliban and thus a terrorist regime, says Banaszak. "If you ask me whether this makes our country safer, then I have my doubts."

At the end of the conversation, the moment turns to the biggest scandal in the Green Party in recent years: the Stefan Gelbhaar case. At the end of 2024, the Green politician came under fire. Anonymous allegations of sexual harassment led to his withdrawal as a candidate shortly before the Berlin state list for the federal election was drawn up and his loss of the direct mandate. It later emerged that one of the key witnesses did not exist. In reality, Green politician Shirin Kreße is said to have assumed a false identity and fabricated some of the allegations.

RBB , which was the first to report on the incident, admitted serious journalistic errors – including a lack of research and unverified statements. An internal party commission later criticized the Green Party's actions as overwhelmed and unprofessional. Structural problems were identified, but a clear investigation has yet to be carried out. So far, there has been no public apology from the party – and Green Party leader Banaszak has also evaded the question of whether he intends to apologize.

Yes, mistakes have been made, "in both directions," he says. His goal is for "everyone to feel safe and comfortable" in the party. The new chairman has the opportunity for reconciliation, and he's letting it slip away. Nevertheless, moderator Matthias Deiß never tires of emphasizing that Banaszak represents a new beginning. But the summer interview shows: The new Greens are struggling with old problems. Within the party, regarding migration policy, and social issues.

Love of country? "I can't use the term love for something so abstract..."

In the "Tagesschau Together" format, Felix Banaszak is asked questions by viewers after his summer interview. Among other things, they address a quote from Robert Habeck , who once wrote: "I always found patriotism disgusting." A user asks: "Do you also have a problem with the fatherland?" The Green Party politician laughs. "First and foremost, I love my wife and my daughter – beyond measure. And I want Germany to be a country where everyone feels comfortable and that is a home for all people."

Matthias Deiß follows up and asks whether he loves Germany or not. Banaszak squirms. Again. Then he replies: "I love Duisburg, I love my concrete surroundings, I have a good relationship with this country. I can use the term love for something so abstract... but everyone should decide for themselves. That's not a political issue." He follows up again: "What don't you like about Germany?" Deiß asks, prompting a loud groan from the Green Party leader. He says he's bothered by Deutsche Bahn and the "collective depression" in society.

The next question from the community is: Why is Germany spending billions on climate protection while the main emitters, like China, India, or the USA, are barely keeping up. His answer: "Yes, Germany is only a small part of the world, but we are the third-largest industrialized nation. And I don't understand since when it's cool to be last somewhere."

For him, it's a given to do everything possible to leave future generations a planet worth living on, regardless of how slowly other countries are making progress. Germany must lead the way internationally with credibility and cannot stop halfway just because others are taking their time. "How will I explain this to my daughter one day?" Banaszak adds.

On the subject of the war in Ukraine , he emphasized that the Greens are by no means pro-war, but rather want peace. Seeking peace, however, does not mean submitting to an aggressor: "If Vladimir Putin is successful in Ukraine, he won't say, 'Oh, look, I've achieved my goal.' Instead, he will choose his closest European neighbors, and at some point, he might even attack a state on NATO territory."

Support for Ukraine is necessary to prevent another war in Europe. It's about protecting Germany's security and peace in Europe : "And the fact that the wrong people have succeeded in hijacking the concept of peace is the responsibility we bear." In conclusion, the Green Party leader emphasized that he will not change his stance on this: "And I cannot sacrifice this responsibility on the altar of opinion polls."