Rumsfeld Keeps Quiet on German Election

US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld kept his lips firmly sealed Wednesday on Germany's forthcoming elections as he wrapped up two days of talks with his NATO colleagues in Berlin. At a press conference before leaving for home, he was asked how he would feel about saying goodbye to his German counterpart Peter Struck, if he fails to remain in office after weekend elections. "I am not going to get into German politics, even slightly. And you know that," Rumsfeld -- who is known for sometimes colorful and occasionally controversial off-the-cuff remarks -- told reporters with a broad grin. The government of Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, which faces likely ouster at the hands of opposition challenger Angela Merkel in the parliamentary polls, was a key opponent of the 2003 Iraq war. Relations between the two allies suffered, falling to what many commentators said was their lowest point since the end of World War II.