A shift to the left by the French president is worrying supporters, who pin the blame on his wifeBewildered supporters of Nicolas Sarkozy, the centre-right French president, are wondering what to do. Should they blame the global financial crisis or the influence of Carla Bruni, his glamorous wife, for what sounds like a lurch to the political left? Rarely does a day pass without "Sarko" displaying signs of an ideological rethink. He has attacked "fat cats" and the "dictatorship of the market". He declared that "laissez-faire capitalism is over" and has called for a cap on executive pay and an end to "golden parachutes". The transformation is striking given that Sarkozy, famed for his "zero tolerance" policing as interior minister, was once derided on the left as a dangerous right-winger. These days he is caricatured on one internet website as a French Che Guevara. Martin Schulz, German leader of the socialists in the European parliament, congratulated him (mockingly) for "speaking like a real European socialist".
Bewildered supporters of Nicolas Sarkozy, the centre-right French president, are wondering what to do. Should they blame the global financial crisis or the influence of Carla Bruni, his glamorous wife, for what sounds like a lurch to the political left?
Rarely does a day pass without "Sarko" displaying signs of an ideological rethink. He has attacked "fat cats" and the "dictatorship of the market". He declared that "laissez-faire capitalism is over" and has called for a cap on executive pay and an end to "golden parachutes".
The transformation is striking given that Sarkozy, famed for his "zero tolerance" policing as interior minister, was once derided on the left as a dangerous right-winger.
These days he is caricatured on one internet website as a French Che Guevara. Martin Schulz, German leader of the socialists in the European parliament, congratulated him (mockingly) for "speaking like a real European socialist".
The neo-lib mantra was selling well until last year, so there you had Sarko. It's out of fashion today? No biggie: I'll give you the "European socialist", bitches...
"French Che Guevara"? Only in the fantasy world of Rupert's galaxy... Europeans think a hundred miles is a long way. Americans think a hundred years is a long time.
