NEOS politician Helmut Brandstätter has still not learned it – and will probably never learn it again, because behavior is usually taught in childhood. Either the member of the National Council cannot control himself or he does not know where the limits lie. Now he has again insulted an ÖVP politician, but not verbally, but on Twitter, and again well below the belt.
Brandstätter is targeting – not for the first time – National Council member Andreas Hanger. Literally he writes: “The Hanger is a stupid and clumsy liar. And a lousy slanderer. That’s probably clear to everyone here.”
ÖVP General Secretary Laura Sachslehner is outraged: “When will NEOS mandater Brandstätter finally end these underhanded attacks towards the People’s Party? Today’s public insult against Andreas Hangar is not the first verbal blunder with which he attracts attention.
The U-Committee is already casting its shadow. “Brandstätter’s underhanded attack is probably just a foretaste of what the People’s Party expects from the opposition parties in the next U-Committee. My appeal therefore goes to all those involved in the forthcoming U-Committee to moderate their choice of words as a matter of urgency.”
The request is unlikely to be heard by Brandstätter. “If you still had anything to do with lived Christianity, I would remind you of the 8th commandment (note: “Thou shalt not lie”). That’s probably pointless, but please read it,” Brandstätter countered unreasonably on Twitter.
The reason for the hustle and bustle is Brandstätter’s involvement in a constitutional protection scandal – the eXXpress reported: A former constitutional protection officer is said to have provided politicians with top secret information for money, as a 1000-page file reveals. Among the political celebrities are ex-FPÖ member of parliament Hans-Jörg Jenewein, Peter Pilz (list Pilz) and Helmut Brandstätter. They were all in close contact with the intelligence officer Egisto O., who is also said to have kept secrets from Russians. Hanger was obviously referring to this when he is said to have said: “Brandstätter, Pilz, Jenewein are the sole winners of the Giovanni Spaghetti – Ott system….” Brandstätter – instead of providing clarity in the cause and invalidating the serious suspicion – shrugged again.
Slips aren’t slips if they happen all the time, like at Brandstätter. On May 27, 2021, the NEOS politician already insulted Hanger after recording a TV discussion. Then he called him a “Gesch…. Oaschloch!” and stormed out of the studio. He had previously called Hanger an “Ungustl” in the TV debate. After a few days, he finally apologized.
Members of parliament have repeatedly reported insults against arsonists from the bench, while others in the National Council are at the lectern. Brandstätter once called the ÖVP MP Reinhold Lopatka “Oida”.
Such manners on the part of parliamentarians are an impertinence – for those who have been insulted, for the Austrians, for the republic.
