For four years the SPD has been the trump card in hand, and hath been refused to play it. The trump card is called "Red-Red-Green government, with the Greens and Linke. So in the German parliament earlier there was a sufficient majority. And what would be the right solution to press the CDU from where it was coming, and take back the key to the problem ...
that it was the right solution, said the data from the 2005 elections, and the way we had arrived. The SPD had experienced a continuous decline from 2003 onwards. That is to say, since Schroeder had peg away on Agenda 2010 (flexibility, reduced welfare ... Nothing to do with what we have in Italy, mind you, eh ... But in that context, were unpalatable measures, the more so that they were not at all necessary. In reality, reduce welfare is never necessary, but that's another story ...). Up to that Lafontaine had launched the first WASG, and then the alliance "Die Linke" (now one-party), the consensus of the SPD had lost. Part abstention, the CDU party. The poll has revealed, and all elections of the various lander. Then Lafontaine had started in the middle, and had recovered dall'astensione consensus is, both the CDU itself. Not only that: the same "Schroeder's big comeback" in 2005, which led the SPD to a step from the votes are equal with the CDU (but starting from far behind in the polls), had occurred when they launched the election campaign, had abandoned the tone of the "new center", and had run back the historic social democratic slogans, those who represented that party for decades.
Any analysis could not start from here: the SPD had lost support to the benefit of CDU and abstention, when he had "done downtown." He had recovered some, when she re-banked left. Another part had been recovered by two parties as to the SPD Left (Linke and even the Greens, have reached a remarkable 8%). And if Linke retrieved and Green votes to abstention and the CDU itself, it was clear that the votes were, and what pool of votes necessary to intervene ...
It was clear to anyone who does not want to look at it with blinders on, that the problem, why the former SPD-Green majority was not enough, it was too much moderation. To correct the error was there. A government that included the Linke, and correction of the route on certain points, was the ideal solution for "find" to use the road where he had stopped, and finally recover the consents. He was also accused the opposition slammed the CDU for the third consecutive time. By sunset, the "star" of Angela Merkel, perhaps permanently. Moreover, such experiences were already present (one in all, the city of Berlin, where the SPD ruled for years by Gysi of the PDS, before that there was a link).
But no. You chose the Linke ever. " Has chosen the Grand Coalition. In which, inevitably, the role could not be subordinate to the CDU and its policies, but temperate. In fact, he brought forward a policy which was to investigate the shortcomings of its predecessor, the softening qualities.
continued collapse, and in the polls in local elections. But the successors of Schroeder and his "pupils" (Steinmeier, Müntefering ... All people of the right wing of the party, some of them admittedly too happy to govern with the CDU), seemed not to notice. The SPD became more and more a sieve. And if a majority of votes could be recovered by Verdi and, above all, Linke, another part was inevitably lost. To abstain. Or worse, to the CDU (because "if the SPD is this, might as well ...", apparently reasoning that many have done, especially given the fact that for four years Merkel has shown" good face " even at the cost of losing some votes to the Liberals ...). Beck had tried to straighten the line, but was bumped off.
The results were inevitable: the SPD in four years has lost 11% of the vote. Part of these ratings have been recovered from other forces of the Left (Linke's remarkable leap from 7% to 12%, even the good progress of the Greens, 8% to 10%). But inevitably, another part was dispersed. And so the CDU, despite also having had a fall, was able to triumph. And done, after 4 years of Grand Coalition in which the vampire ally, its beautiful government with the Liberals. And now they will be bitter kale.
The German lesson is clear: the Left can win, to convince, move, when he is able to be herself. The same phenomenon "Linke" shows. But when the Left tries to "become the center" of seeking "third way" and stuff, water it down, moderate and right to pursue on their own ground, will inevitably be lost. And to lose. At the same time, the great progress of the Link, which has lasted 5 / 6 years without knowing pause, reveals how much and how Left simply taking a straight bar, is eschewing defensive identity (who thinks that the link is comparable to the PRC Ferrero is astray. Like those who saw her as a force "extremist" or "anti-government." Quite the contrary: the Linke, under certain conditions, has always been available to govern), and temptations neocentriste, grows and grows well. As, indeed, already showed the same German Greens (born bringing together all the "veterans of the '68 'into a political force that could be on the left of the SPD, and have come since the 90s to high levels and then grow Further to this day).
It 's a lesson that we must grasp in our country. The answer to the crisis Left is neither the one who found Fassino (which even went beyond Schroeder and students, "dissolving the DS in a new force that is even more of the Left, even in the name, and in these days is proving all his contrasddizioni), nor that he has found someone like Paolo Ferrero, who has reacted to the defeat of identity sull'arroccamento bringing PRC ("PRC for today and tomorrow", "elections ever with the hammer and sickle," and so on. ..). The Left is reborn when he finds the courage to innovate while remaining itself. To open a "new stories", to unify its roots, but never let go centrist tendencies and the like.
In Italy, despite a thousand difficulties, there are those who seem to have taken this path. At present, however, is a small entity (not small, one million votes ...), with many enemies. If he can resist, and to move forward, can really be the right card, the decisive one to reconstruct a face that could oppose the right and seek to defeat it. Also depends on all of us. And the support we give to this project.
From here you will also see if and how much we have learned the lesson of Germany.
