List of Political Catch Phrases - Germany

Germany

• Period between the Reichs 1806–1871
  • "Proletarier aller Länder, vereinigt euch!" (Workers of the world unite!) From the Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels
• Imperial Germany 1871–1918
  • "Ich kenne keine Partei mehr, ich kenne nur Deutsche!" (I no longer know of party, I only know Germans) Wilhelm II 1914 in a speech at the parliament, referencing the endorsement of the war by the formerly shunned Social Democrats
• West-Germany 1949–1990
  • "Auch Sie können nicht verhindern, dass ich von Tag zu Tag klüger werde!" (You can't impede my getting wiser day by day.) Konrad Adenauer – This sentence is often mixed up with the following:
  • "Was geht mich mein dummes Geschwätz von vorgestern an!" (What do I care about my yesterday's waffle.) Konrad Adenauer
  • "Maß halten" (Don't overdo it.) Ludwig Erhard's warning against an overheating economy in the 1960s
  • "Wir wollen mehr Demokratie wagen." (We want to dare more democracy.) Willy Brandt on the plans of the social-liberal coalition
  • "Wer Visionen hat, sollte zum Arzt gehen." (Those who have visions should consult a doctor) Helmut Schmidt
  • "Und es gilt auch der Satz. Zum Mitschreiben: Die Rente ist sicher." (And this sentence stands. To co-write: The pension is safe.) Norbert Blüm Firstly used in the campaign 1986. The sentence is often used to show that the government is lying to the people.
  • "Mit Verlaub, Herr Präsident, Sie sind ein Arschloch." (With all due respect, Mr. President, you are an asshole.) Joschka Fischer. He thus addressed the parliament's president after the latter excluded an MP from the debate over an allegation.
• East-Germany 1949–1990
  • "Die Sicherung der Grenze ist das souveräne Recht eines jeden Staates, und so auch unserer Deutschen Demokratischen Republik." (Securing the border is the sovereign right of every state, and that applies to our German Democratic Republic as well.) Erich Honecker
  • "Niemand hat die Absicht, eine Mauer zu errichten." (No one intends to build a wall.) Walter Ulbricht, 15 June 1961, less than two months before the Berlin Wall was built
• Berlin Republic 1990–present
  • "Wirtschaft ist für die Menschen da, und nicht umgekehrt, und Demokratie gehört bei die Wirtschaft mit bei." (The economy is for the people, and not vice versa, and economy is a part of democracy.) Franz Müntefering The second part of the compound sentence contains a "folksy" grammatical error that is impossible to translate into English.
  • "Ich bin schwul, und das ist auch gut so!" (I am gay, and it's fine this way.) Klaus Wowereit, phrasing his coming out