May 07, 2007
Sarkozy Seeks To Modernize French Economy
Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's characterization of France as "Old Europe" four years ago stung the traditional U.S. ally, possibly in part because the dig may have carried a seed of truth.
That nation's economic malaise may be one reason why 85 percent of the electorate -- a staggering number by American standards -- turned out yesterday to elect as its new president Nicolas Sarkozy, the conservative candidate who promised the more aggressive cure.
France has yet to step headlong into the free-market capitalism that many believe has turned Germany -- the other target of Rumsfeld's remarks -- into a runaway economic success. Many observers, both in France and abroad, see France's ills as the result of lax unemployment policies, a lopsided tax system and overly powerful unions, among other symptoms.
Sarkozy himself has acknowledged that the major transformation required to restore France's economy will be painful, and that his union-busting and deficit-reducing proposals will likely inspire riots in the months ahead.
Indeed, the rioting has already begun. Angry French youth protesting the election outcome set about smashing windows and destroying vehicles across Paris yesterday and today.
Undoubtedly, some of that anger has to do with the defeat of Socialist candidate Ségolène Royal, who would have been France's first woman president had she not lost the vote, by 53 percent to 47 percent. And Sarkozy's description of youths who rioted in minority-dominated Paris suburbs in 2005 as "rabble" and "scum" has antagonized many immigrant and leftist groups within France.
Riots also broke out last year, when President Jacques Chirac's government floated a proposal that would have given employers more flexibility to hire and fire workers under 26. That law was intended to break the lock on the country's soaring youth unemployment by lowering the potential burden of hiring young people.
Chirac, for his part, has only sunk in popularity since then. He was never a great friend of the Bush administration, and after the results were announced yesterday, President Bush phoned Sarkozy to congratulate him. The two are not strangers: Sarkozy, dubbed "the American candidate" by his detractors in France, met Bush last September during a visit here as Interior minister.
Sarkozy has vowed to strengthen relations with Washington, but he remains openly critical of the Iraq war and of the White House's position on climate change.
Last month, public radio's "Marketplace" reported on Sarkozy's efforts to woo countrymen who've moved abroad for better economic opportunities. Members of the White House press corps asked spokesman Tony Snow today if Sarkozy would replace Tony Blair as Bush's "best friend." The Economist and the New Republic weighed in on Sarkozy's victory, while Germany's Deutsche Welle collected opinion from European papers.
