As the weakest of the European Union's three major institutions, the European Parliament has often been viewed as little more than a rubber stamp for the others. But Martin Schulz, the German Social Democrat who will become its president next week, plans to change that -- and he's not afraid of ruffling feathers in the process.

Two stars are blinking red on the indicator panel, signaling that the allotted speaking time has run out. Germany's Martin Schulz is already about two minutes over his limit, but he just keeps talking.

It's mid-December, and he's speaking about Europe's debt crisis and the future of the European Union. Schulz is taking advantage of his last appearance as the leader of the center-left Socialist group in the European Parliament to demonstrate to everyone gathered in the assembly hall in Strasbourg that few could come up with verbal zingers as strong as his. "The financial markets are driving a Ferrari, while the governments of Europe are puttering along behind on a bicycle," he says.

Schulz keeps on speaking, but he has nothing to fear as European Parliament President Jerzy Buzek, who is from Poland, lets him have his way. Without permission, Schulz has just about reached twice the limit of his speaking time when he finally starts wrapping it up. Then Buzek says into the microphone: "I have really been enormously patient."

On Tuesday, Jan. 17, the 56-year-old Schultz will replace Buzek as the president of the European Parliament. In the parliament, the usual procedure is that the two biggest parliamentary groups each get to choose the president for half of the five-year legislative period, with the office-holder being replaced after two-and-a-half years. Thus, Buzek, a member of the European People's Party (EPP), the alliance of Christian Democratic and conservative parties making up the largest faction in the parliament, will be succeeded by Schulz, the head of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D), the second-largest faction.