Medium-sized companies are increasingly realizing that Robert Habeck doesn’t know enough about economics. His patience for his amateurish explanations has run out.

If someone mentions Habeck’s name in conversations with medium-sized companies, it immediately lowers their mood. They have no trust in the minister responsible for them. It is becoming increasingly clear that he doesn’t know enough about economics. The patience for his amateurish explanations has run out.

Recently, his reputation has fallen even further because he not only misled the public, but also deceived him. It’s about the continued operation of the nuclear power plants.

When it became known that arguments for longer nuclear power plant lifetimes were being sidelined in his ministry, Habeck launched a relief attack. He reported on discussions with the operating companies and claimed that they did not believe continued operation was possible.

The big companies are now contradicting this ministerial representation. The company PreussenElektra wrote a letter to its employees about this. It says that Habeck presented the nuclear power plant situation in a “significantly shortened manner”. The choice of the term “shortened” is a diplomatic move. The employees understand that Habeck – said in plain German – was lying.

It goes on to say: “Essential arguments that prove the feasibility of continued operation are ignored.”

It is important to managers that their employees are correctly informed. PreussenElektra was ready to examine and implement continued operation.

The operating company E.on was also prepared to let its Isar 2 nuclear power plant continue to operate. Your statement refutes Habeck’s talk.

It literally says: “We made it clear throughout the debate that we could technically and logistically enable the power plant to continue operating if the federal government wanted this.”

But the government didn’t want to and instead played black peter to the detriment of the companies.

The CDU leader Friedrich Merz must be satisfied with 90 percent approval. After he gave his speech at the party conference, all the delegates in the hall without exception stood up and applauded him for several minutes.

No one wanted to be identified as a rebel. But when they sat down again and were called to elect the chairman, the 100 percent approval crumbled. Under the protection of the secret vote, 99 delegates became brave and voted against Merz.

Ten percent rejection is not a painful figure in a democratic party. Friedrich Merz had to reckon with this given the complexity of his Union. He should not spend too much time speculating about the origins of the 99 dissenters.

The secret ballot only allows for circumstantial evidence. Whether a nest of resistance has formed in a regional association or whether rivals did not want to let it become too strong remains a matter of speculation. Stubborn supporters of Angela Merkel are at least suspicious.

The delegate from Uckermark did not appear. Many are amazed at how radically the former chairwoman has turned away from her party. Even from the Konrad Adenauer Foundation. Despite her absence, she has left a disturbing message to her old friends. It was a whispered topic among the delegates that their former boss would soon give a farewell speech to the Green Party member Jürgen Trittin.

FOCUS founding editor-in-chief Helmut Markwort was an FDP member of the Bavarian state parliament from 2018 to 2023.