That is the ominous subtitle of an article discussing Schroeder's refusal to accept his election loss. Putsch is not a word used likely in Germany as it invites immediate comparisons to Hitler. Why?

because Gerhard Schröder argues that the election had a"personal component" which"is nothing but a thinly-disguised version of his old belief that he enjoys a stronger bond with the German public than any other politician. Indeed, a man like Schröder sees every election as a plebiscite."

In reality, Merkel's margin of victory may have been less than a full percentage point but that should not matter. Moreover, she received 450,000 more votes than Schroeder. Schroeder's entire behavior reeks of old fashioned German male chauvinism.

I bet the store on this tough minded lady. She is not a good campaigner but clearly, she is a good behind the scenes operator. Otherwise, she would not be leading the conservative party or successfully tilting the leftist media in her favor.