Schröder Steels SPD for the Final Charge

Gravel voiced and employing the entire arsenal of his vaunted communicative skills, Schröder spurred on his party ahead of the Sept. 18 election despite polls that show him hopelessly behind challenger Angela Merkel.

"Nothing has been decided yet! Don't be scared off," said Schröder, before 525 SPD delegates in Berlin. Following his 1.5 hour speech, he received a 12 minute standing ovation, and left the stage to cheers of "Here we go!"

Schröder and Merkel have been criss-crossing the country tirelessly in the past few weeks, presenting German voters with alternate visions of the reforms necessary to create jobs and help Germany adapt to the demands of globalization.

Following the American-style party congress of the Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union, the SPD planned something more low key to set themselves apart.

Painting a dire picture

Instead of singers from the rock musical, "Queen," the SPD featured a coal miners men's choir. And instead of jousting with Merkel's attacks on his past seven years as chancellor, Schröder painted a dire picture of a Germany under the CDU leader.

"They want a society in which solidarity and justice hardly have any place," he said.

Rather than continue on his path of modest reforms to Germany's social market economic system, the Union parties are proposing radical cuts that will produce a society that's "cold, one in which people do not stick together, and that is therefore inhumane."

A majority of Germans agree that their system, burdened by inflexible labor laws, the financial cost of reunification and an aging population, needs reforming. The question is how much.

Hoping for a turnaround

Schröder has been appealing to the estimated 20 percent of voters still undecided by promising tough economic reforms that are at the same time "socially just."

But analysts doubt he is being heard. Though they prefer him as chancellor over Merkel, voters clearly do not approve of the direction he has taken the country.

Modest reforms he has introduced to the labor market and social welfare system have cost billions of euros and so far failed to create more jobs. The number of unemployed in Germany last month reached 4.7 million.

Current polls show Merkel's CDU and its likely coalition partner, the Free Democrats, at 51 percent of the vote. Schröder's SPD has between 28 and 30 percent of the vote, and their current junior coalition partner the Green Party, 8 percent.

Schröder didn't mention the Green Party during his entire speech, something analysts say indicate he is readying the SPD for the possibility of forming a coalition with other parties. But the chancellor nevertheless remained adamant a turnaround was still possible.

"This election will be decided in the final days," said Schröder.

Attacking Kirchhof

Following up on an SPD strategy that he will likely continue in the coming days, Schröder attacked Merkel's shadow finance minister, Paul Kirchhof. The former constitutional court judge has proved to be a controversial figure both with the opposition as well as within the ranks of the Union.

His calls for a radically reformed tax system are seen by some as not financially feasible. Referring to an earlier paper Kirchhof wrote indicating that a woman's place was in the home, he accused the Union of wanting to transport German society "back into the 19th century."

"Merkel policies," he said, "would be for the vast majority of this country negative policies."