New French president

[Onkel Neal]

I was in Paris the night Chirac was elected, quite a while ago. Congrats to the French people on your election of a new President.

"I want the workers to be respected. I want to protect the French from seeing their jobs going abroad. I don't believe in living on social welfare. I don't believe everyone is the same. I believe in merit, I believe in effort and reward for that effort and I believe in social mobility. But above all, I believe in hard work."

Sarkozy is definitely the man I would have voted for, if I were French. Now, it's our turn to elect a new leader. Wish us luck! ;)

[Skybird]

He also said he wants no more EU constitution redone, only a slightly changed EU treaty like the one we already have. Good for France, good for the rest of us europeans. These attempts to reanimate a dead patient must stop, and a stubborn France will helpt in that.

He also said he wants to implement some sort of more reasonable control in immigration. Good for France, and maybe an encouragement for others.

He is said to go off too easily, and is said to be a man wanting to control all and everything. Let's see what comes of this, and his declared intentions. He will need to boil with water like all others, too, so probably he talked more than he can fulfill.

Royal had a killing smile, but beyond that I am not aware that she ever said how she wanted to pay for all the social programs she was talking about, and beyond social themes she had not much to talk about anyway, my impression was. I'm glad she has not won, although Sarkozy will be a tough and quite egocentric, maybe even ruthless partner for Germany.

[dean_acheson]

Hooray!

[Yahoshua]

Good on for France!!

[TteFAboB]

Vive la France. Congratulations for resisting the "Thirdworldization" of your politics.

Cool map by zones: http://elections.lefigaro.fr/resultats/elections-presidentielles-2007/2eme-tour/departements/ Click on them to find out the number of votes per zone.

[Polak]

Good for France, and the rest of the EU. :up:

[Nostromo]

Huzzah! I wanted to vote Sarkozy, but being an Englishman I wasn't eligible. Nevertheless me and my compatriot went to great lengths to inform passing motorists of the wisdom in voting Sarkozy.

[STEED]

As the old saying goes one (B) out and another (B) in. ;) :p

Let's see how long it takes before he has a go at us Brits. ;) :p :lol:

[XabbaRus]

As long as he helps us get our two carriers I don't care.

ACtually Sarkozy has a alot of respect for Britain and our employment model. From what I understand he wants to model the French systme on the British one in terms of flexible employment.

[STEED]

He has no love for the EU so he can not be all bad. ;)

[Yahoshua]

The "youths" are rioting again....


http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2007/05/the_french_youths_are_rioting.html

[bookworm_020]

Good Luck to France and I hope it all works out in the end! Ther will be some people upset at the result, but I do hope that the country will come together under the new president and that he won't dissapoint them.

[Tchocky]

The "youths" are rioting again....


http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2007/05/the_french_youths_are_rioting.html

Nice to see some passion for politics. And an impressive 84% turnout :D

[Yahoshua]

Yeah, I'm hoping the U.S. will make a similar turnout this next election.

[waste gate]

Yeah, I'm hoping the U.S. will make a similar turnout this next election.

Not the rioting by the left. Thank you very much. Socialist are showing their true colors when they resort to violence when they don't get their way at the polls.

Some are saying that the US has lead in the French and previously the German elections. Bear in mind that conservatives in both these countries are not conservative by US standards. They are merely less socialist.

The results may also fortell the US election where socialist's ideals are seen for the fraud, politically, economically and socially, they are.

[Yahoshua]

Not the rioting by the left. Thank you very much. Socialist are showing their true colors when they resort to violence when they don't get their way at the polls.

Some are saying that the US has lead in the French and previously the German elections. Bear in mind that conservatives in both these countries are not conservative by US standards. They are merely less socialist.

The results may also fortell the US election where socialist's ideals are seen for the fraud, politically, economically and socially, they are.

I know about the differences in term and concept between Euro left and US left (although the political lines are still fuzzy, course the lack of sleep doesn't help much.....in fact I need to shut off and crash now....g'night).

[Tchocky]

Yeah, I'm hoping the U.S. will make a similar turnout this next election.
Not the rioting by the left. Thank you very much. Socialist are showing their true colors when they resort to violence when they don't get their way at the polls.

Some are saying that the US has lead in the French and previously the German elections. Bear in mind that conservatives in both these countries are not conservative by US standards. They are merely less socialist.

The results may also fortell the US election where socialist's ideals are seen for the fraud, politically, economically and socially, they are.
Think Yah meant Voter Turnout. France is up at 84% whereas the US stands around 58-60%.
The more voters the better. That is, for the country. Political parties often dislike more voters.

[nikimcbee]

now we need to defeat our socialist:
http://www.flatrock.org.nz/topics/money_politics_law/assets/hillary_clinton.jpg

[nikimcbee]

Sorry, I didn't mean to traumatize everybody.:dead:

[Yahoshua]

Sry if I wasn't clear, but I did mean voter turnout in elections, not rioters (that's NOT something I want to see happen anywhere!!).

[Heibges]

I heard on the news, and thought it was very funny, that if you are a politician in France, and you DON'T have a mistress, it's considered a sign of weakness.

I'm moving to France.

[AntEater]

Wow, so much in one thread:
- usual "frog" cliches
- violent 1940s style anticommunism
- Murdoch style pathological british EU hatred

What does all of this have to do with the french elections?

From my point of view, Sarko was elected because of his tough stance on immigrants. Like most germans, most french dislike the prospect of Eurabia and Sarko seems to be doing something about it.
Keep in mind most of the rioters were moroccan/algerian "french", not bloody revolutionary french bolsheviks trying to undermine american values and surrender to the germans while subjugating britain via the EU:rotfl::damn:

(btw, why do I seem to get a new avatar every day?)

[Sea Demon]

I was just happy to see that the socialists lost. I was also disgusted that there were riots though. Apparently socialists have problems with people who don't agree with them. :lol:

There is hope for France after all.

[Skybird]

Also worth to remember that with Sarkozy's talking so far, there will be no Turkey membership in the EU. While the Turkish Islamists of Erdogan's AKP have called for early elections, but now try to change the constitution before the election in summer (so that the majority they often have amongst the voters in the rural population can be used to enforce a new Islamist president), France will need to hold a referendum amongst it's people for Turkey membership, and currently it is quite clear that such a referendum will never pass. Ask he German population, and I'm sure it also would not pass. That's why we do not get asked. Same like with the EU constitution.

And look at the obvious conflict in turkey between secularists, and islamists grabbing for power, and you can assume that more and more people in Europe do not wish to have the non-european Muslim state of Turkey Turkey in the European, non-Islamic Union.

Next, our anglosaxon friends will not like to hear it, but as Peter Scholl-Latour reminded people yesterday on NTV, it was France initiating major initiatives and impulses for european projects such as Airbus, Ariane, Galileo, the EU treaties, and many more. the major impulses have come from France, not Germany. Often in close cooperation with Germany, and with massive German support, but the initiave all to often came from France. I expect to see France claiming more influence again in Europe, and not being shy to confront the EU institutions as well. France probably will give the Eu and Germany's Merkel a hell of a time over the EU constitution (of which Giscard d'Estaing as well as Helmut Schmidt himself said that it needs to be cut down to just a very small number of pages instead of that idiotic monster it is right now). I must say I welcome France's assumed strengthening role for Europe, to try to keep Brussel as well as the Anglosaxon influence - represented by Britain trying to include Turkey and others and to prevent a more powerful core-union of only a few European central powers - in check.

Sarkozy also indicated that he wants to tackle the monster of the 27 EU members, that by their sheer numbers now are unable to act, which may base on thoughts same as mine: I would like to see a european core-union of only some major european nations, niot more than five or six, and the rest being more or less only a trade union and a commom economy ground. Not wanting to hurt any national sentiments here, but you can very well have a much stronger Europe without many of the nations that are today full members: Italy, Spain, Holland, Denmark, Sweden, Poland, Czech Republic. the absence of any of these will not be an insurmountable obstacle for building a stronger europe with more degrees of freedom to act in foreign politics. On the other hand, you can't have a strong Europe without the only two really inevitable nations being economically strong and sitting in the geographical centre of the old continent: France, and Germany. These two are doomed to be heart and core of anything called "Europe's Union." but instead we have 27 cooks all stirring the same porridge, and all of them want to be seen of as equal reputation and importance. That is simply too many. Result: either foul compromises over and over again, or lack of a quorum.

Too many cooks spoil the brothe.

What Sarkozy will do concerning relations to the Middle East, remains to be seen. France' antipathy against american dominance probably will neutralize any symptahy for acchieving a stronger and tougher stance against Islamic countries, so maybe not much will change concerning the friendly noise between future Eurabia and the Islamic world. Which is a shame - but maybe you can't have it all from just one man.

But not moving too fast here. Maybe we/I expect too much of Sarkozy anyway. that he is more fleixible than Chirac and maybe even more confronting than him, maybe is an asset concerning some european themes. But it will have a price, especially for Germany. I expect to see him pushing hard for France dominating the mutual relations between Germany and France more than before, and I also expect to see mounting economical conflicts, like we already see in the struggle for power inside of Airbus and EADS. As was mentioned yesterday on TV, his first foreign visit will not be Brussel, and certainly not London or Washingto, but - Berlin.

[waste gate]

Birds of a feather?


http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20070424/i/r489138599.jpg?x=380&y=253&sig=EGBhVr38mBIerGbkn25reQ--http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20070428/capt.22e238ed3cbd43ceb2cc60707a91ade5.democrats_co nvention_cali103.jpg?x=380&y=281&sig=K0d5Em1IpQmpZj7L8EYkBQ--

[Ishmael]

One could say the same about these guys. Birds of a feather?

http://img160.imageshack.us/img160/3523/roveas3.th.jpg (http://img160.imageshack.us/my.php?image=roveas3.jpg)

http://img248.imageshack.us/img248/3901/himmlerfu1.th.jpg (http://img248.imageshack.us/my.php?image=himmlerfu1.jpg)

[AntEater]

You're insulting....
...Himmler?
:rotfl:

[Ishmael]

You're insulting....
...Himmler?
:rotfl:

We are all the lesser sons of greater fathers. One need look no further than the White House for illustration of that maxim.

[Sea Demon]

One could say the same about these guys. Birds of a feather?

http://img160.imageshack.us/img160/3523/roveas3.th.jpg (http://img160.imageshack.us/my.php?image=roveas3.jpg)

http://img248.imageshack.us/img248/3901/himmlerfu1.th.jpg (http://img248.imageshack.us/my.php?image=himmlerfu1.jpg)

This is just.........stupid. Totally stupid. :yep: But whatever. I think the Bush=Hitler stuff isn't going to end until he's out of office. Even as idiotic as the claim is, it will persist until January, 2009. It's just funny now Rove=Himmler?!?!?! :lol::rotfl:

[Ishmael]

One could say the same about these guys. Birds of a feather?

http://img160.imageshack.us/img160/3523/roveas3.th.jpg (http://img160.imageshack.us/my.php?image=roveas3.jpg)

http://img248.imageshack.us/img248/3901/himmlerfu1.th.jpg (http://img248.imageshack.us/my.php?image=himmlerfu1.jpg)

This is just.........stupid. Totally stupid. :yep: But whatever. I think the Bush=Hitler stuff isn't going to end until he's out of office. Even as idiotic as the claim is, it will persist until January, 2009. It's just funny now Rove=Himmler?!?!?! :lol::rotfl:

Look at the US Attorney scandal & Rove's plan to use the US Attorneys to suppress democratic & minority voters for the 2006 & 2008 elections using bogus & trumped-up voter fraud investigations. The 8 US attorneys were fired because they refused to pursue those allegations due to lack of evidence. Of course, the fact that they Were investigating Republican party corruption didn't help them either. Apparently rove & his minions are afraid of having a truly fair election free of chicanery because they'll lose their anal orifices. What I see The Republicans have done is put party ahead of country time after time after time. This is nothing but the wholesale politicization of government to serve one party's aims & goals. So, yes, the comparison is apt.

[Sea Demon]

Look at the US Attorney scandal & Rove's plan to use the US Attorneys to suppress democratic & minority voters for the 2006 & 2008 elections using bogus & trumped-up voter fraud investigations. The 8 US attorneys were fired because they refused to pursue those allegations due to lack of evidence. Of course, the fact that they Were investigating Republican party corruption didn't help them either. Apparently rove & his minions are afraid of having a truly fair election free of chicanery because they'll lose their anal orifices. What I see The Republicans have done is put party ahead of country time after time after time. This is nothing but the wholesale politicization of government to serve one party's aims & goals. So, yes, the comparison is apt.
Geeeeeez Ishmael. Nobody was prevented from voting anywhere. :roll: Just because a crybaby like John Kerry said so, doesn't make it so. Just because Rosie O' Donnel makes the claim, doesn't make it so. Don't you find it funny that last election, before election night, there were cries from Democrats on all major networks crying about "voter intimidation", voter "suppression", and all other nonsense. Then when the Democrats won, all those stories just disappeared. Actually Ishmael, I want to talk about Democrat corruption. You know, the real stuff. Not these fake Republican "scandals". No, I want the real deal, like Harry Reid's land deals. How about Nancy Pelosi's corruption with Star-Kist? What about Dianne Feinsteinn controlling appropriations to companies where profits went to her own husband and family? Some with business dealing with the Chi-coms. Wake up and smell the treason, Ishmael. And it ain't Bush. In your own mind Bush may be Hitler. And many Republicans may be corrupt. But let us not forget the slop the Democrats themselves lie in.

And your above "Rovian" "scandals" are nonsense.

[Heibges]

Both draft dodgers? :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[Skybird]

Yes, SeaDeamon, it's all just another wicked Democrat's conspiracy.

http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwashington/16962753.htm

But anyway, since it is always wicked Democrat's conspiracies, I wonder why all major smearing campaigns since the sixties have been launched by Republican party then, including real hardcore conspiracies like Nixon and Watergate, Oliver North and Irangate and the CIA-supervised Crack-and-Cocain explosion on American streets during Reagan's love affair with the Contras to help them raising the funds to pay for their weapon buys.

Add to this highly suspicious irregularities during American elections (that without doubt are only conspiracies as well) of the last eight years, and suspicious law designs in several states helping to prevent anti-Republican minorities to vote on claims of criminalizing people for harmless things like wrong parking.

[baggygreen]

And in other news, a drastic attempt to save the thread was launched by baggy this morning..

Im glad this Sarkozy bloke was elected. From all accounts i've read and seen, he's gonna stand up and be counted on the international scene rather than meekly throw insults over his shoulder as he retreats from any confrontation. heeee

seriously though, it does seem as though he was the better choice of the 2, which is nice to see. and wow, an 84% turnout - thats incredible. not quite at our 100% yet..;)

[Onkel Neal]

Thanks, Baggy. Somehow every thread here gets turned into a blood-death idealogical struggle.

My personal take, on what little I know of French politics, I take this as a good sign. France is a great nation, they have much to be proud of. I'm hoping to visit again in about 2 years, if the dollar will ever recover :hmm:

[Skybird]

A collection of reactions and quotes from the German press:

http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,481755,00.html

[bookworm_020]

With such a large turnout for the election, they can say that majority of people wanted this president, not who could get supporters to the polls before closing time.

Good luck to France.:up:

[fatty]

Despite the run-off Sarko only had a 3% lead. That is hardly decisive and barely a majority. I almost would have preferred a lower turnout because then it wouldn't have been so telling about the enormous divide in France right now. Given the violence we have already seen... I am holding my breath to see how well these sides of the country are able to co-operate and move France forward. What is it they say, "a house divided against itself cannot stand?"

[Skybird]

With such a large turnout for the election, they can say that majority of people wanted this president, not who could get supporters to the polls before closing time.

Good luck to France.:up:

Yes it was a large turnout, but Sarkozy got just 53%, while Royal got 47%. That is not really miles apart, I would even say it was a thin outcome. The left is not as splitted, desperate and weak as let's say ten years ago, and French people are known for being easy to go on strike. Sarko will have to deal with a probably strong opposition (if it manages not to cannibalize itself again over party celebreties pushing their personal ambitions for power and influence again)

The one thing I do not like about Sarkozy is that he wants to tackle the independance of the European Central Bank, and wants to bring the Euro under direct political influencing, softening up the criterions for the Euro that already is not as solid and hard as the German Mark has been. I certainly do not want to get a pendant to the former French Franc, or the Italian Lira.

[baggygreen]

I was tuned out while the news was playing last night, but i believe he intends on lengthening the French working week, which is a paltry 35 hours. That WILL definately cause strikes. He's gonna have a heck of a lot to contend with over the next few months, poor fella

[bibi]

Despite the run-off Sarko only had a 3% lead. That is hardly decisive and barely a majority.


Actually, if one look at past results of French presidential elections, this is a clear victory for Sarkozy. There is more than 6% differences between him and Royal (53.06-46.94). The socialist party was hit hard and cannot contest the legitimity of Sarkozy as a winner and that the French voters want his project.

Another thing to consider, 3 on 4 people who voted for Sarkozy supported his project, on the contrary only 1 on 2 people who voted for Royal voted to support her project and the other one voted against Sarkozy. She was a terrible candidate throughout the campaign and the socialist party failed to convince the voters that they would bring some serious changes (in the good direction, lol!) to the country, so they lost. For my greatest pleasure, it is now the 3rd defeat in a row for the socialists, and as long as they will not get a reality check on various issues (economics, immigration, crime, etc...)and keep being idealists hypocrits, it will go on.

I was tuned out while the news was playing last night, but i believe he intends on lengthening the French working week, which is a paltry 35 hours. That WILL definately cause strikes. He's gonna have a heck of a lot to contend with over the next few months, poor fella
No he doesn't want to lengthen the working week, he wants to favor workers and companies who work more by exempting some taxes which currently penalise this.
He wants the 35 hours week as a minimum whereas the socialists wanted it to be a maximum. This issue is not going to cause strikes because those who volunteer to work more will benefit from it, others will not. The French economy will benefit from this measure too because currently its growth is 1% less than the Eurozone.

Anyway, he is likely to face some serious strikes on other issues though but the left and the syndicalists (who have almost no representativity in France despite their public nuisance ability) cannot ignore that the French want changes and they gave Sarkozy a clear mandate for this. He said after his victory that he was not going to betray our trust. We will see how things turn out soon enough.

[baggygreen]

i shall stand corrected then :)

[fatty]

Actually, if one look at past results of French presidential elections, this is a clear victory for Sarkozy. There is more than 6% differences between him and Royal (53.06-46.94). The socialist party was hit hard and cannot contest the legitimity of Sarkozy as a winner and that the French voters want his project.

Sorry, you are absolutely right, it is 6%, not sure what inspired me to write 3. However I stand by what I said earlier; of course Sarkozy's victory is legitimate - he broke the 50% - but with the enormous turnout the election suggests that the divide in France is going to present some challenges for Sarkozy.

And even if the opposition is in a slight minority and of mixed loyalty (as you said), we've seen how unfortunately vocal some of them can be :nope:

[The Avon Lady]

I'm not bumping this thread.

I'm hiccupping it (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4u3449L5VI). :()1:

[Yahoshua]

Sry, but I don't speak french (and there's no subtitling for it).

[The Avon Lady]

Sry, but I don't speak french.
Neither do it. I thought words were not necessary, if you take the video in the context of Sarkozy getting together with Putin at the G8 for a liitle drink(ing).

[UglyMowgli]

Sarko didn't like alcool brevage, he get sick with 2 glass of wine so when he meet Putin I didn't beleive he take some vodka or even wine, just water.

[The Avon Lady]

Sarko didn't like alcool brevage, he get sick with 2 glass of wine so when he meet Putin I didn't beleive he take some vodka or even wine, just water.
What's Putin been putin' in the water? :hmm:

:o

[Yahoshua]

GHB to get better political deals?

[U-533]

Yeah, I'm hoping the U.S. will make a similar turnout this next election.

Not the rioting by the left. Thank you very much. Socialist are showing their true colors when they resort to violence when they don't get their way at the polls.

Some are saying that the US has lead in the French and previously the German elections. Bear in mind that conservatives in both these countries are not conservative by US standards. They are merely less socialist.

The results may also fortell the US election where socialist's ideals are seen for the fraud, politically, economically and socially, they are.

I vote for "waste gate"!

Truly I'm not to sure who to vote for in 2008...

Rudolph Giuliani is the best choice so far...:hmm: