French rivals clash in TV debate

[Theobald]

French rivals clash in TV debate


The two candidates vying to be French president have gone head-to-head in a highly anticipated TV debate.


Conservative frontrunner Nicolas Sarkozy and Socialist Segolene Royal clashed over employment, the economy, the environment and law and order.

The only debate of the campaign was a heated confrontation, and continued beyond the expected two-hour duration.

The encounter was seen as a decisive battle in swaying undecided voters ahead of Sunday's second-round vote.

Mr Sarkozy won 31.2% and Ms Royal won 25.9% in the 22 April poll.

On the attack

The face-off was screened by France's two biggest TV channels and watched by an estimated 20 million people.
Ms Royal criticised Mr Sarkozy's record in government during the debate, particularly on crime and security - Mr Sarkozy's traditional forte.


"In 2002, Mr Sarkozy, you talked about zero tolerance, but today you can see that the French are very worried about the rise in violence and aggression in French society," she said.

The former interior minister defended himself, saying the figures showed violent crime had fallen.

The most heated exchange came during the second half of the debate as the contenders discussed school places for children with disabilities.

Ms Royal accused Mr Sarkozy of "political immorality" for dismantling socialist measures on the issue.

Mr Sarkozy attacked his opponent for losing her temper - a criticism often levelled at Mr Sarkozy himself.

The rivals also debated public sector reform and clashed over employment. Mr Sarkozy said the 35-hour week, which was brought in by the socialists, had been a disaster for the economy. He said France needed to work more.

"She [Royal] still thinks that you have to share out the work like pieces of a cake," Mr Sarkozy said. "Not a single country in the world accepts this logic, which is a monumental mistake".

He also criticised Ms Royal's pension policy as vague.

Despite the clashes, neither candidate appeared to score a decisive blow, says the BBC's Alasdair Sandford in Paris.

They will be looking keenly at the opinion polls in the next few days to see whether they made the impact they were hoping for, our correspondent says.

Mr Sarkozy and Ms Royal are hoping to win votes from the 18% of voters who backed the third-placed candidate, centrist Francois Bayrou, as well as those who supported far-right nationalist Jean-Marie Le Pen.

'Decisive' moment

Former President Valery Giscard d'Estaing, who created the put-down "You don't have a monopoly of the heart" in the 1974 presidential election debate with his rival Francois Mitterrand, says that debate helped him win the election.

He predicts that the Sarkozy-Royal showdown will be "decisive".

But other commentators say more than 80% of French people have already decided how they are going to vote.

The last head-to-head presidential-race debate - Jacques Chirac versus Socialist Lionel Jospin in 1995 - drew 17 million viewers.
Mr Chirac won the first of his two terms that year. In 2002, he refused to debate with Mr Le Pen.

Source

[Theobald]

Sarkozy was good, very good, playing the role of the calm and relaxed leader, the Mitterrand-like "quiet force", while Royal was only criticising him and even lost her temper.

Originally Posted by Theobald

Former President Valery Giscard d'Estaing, who created the put-down "You don't have a monopoly of the heart" in the 1974 presidential election debate with his rival Francois Mitterrand, says that debate helped him win the election.

It is not that the debate - and particularly that "monopoly of the heart" thing - helped him win the election, it made him win the election.
This sentence was probably the best political talk of these last 50 years. Excellent, just excellent.

[Franze]

The debate was very interesting, I don´t know french but I understand something, and in addition the french stetics in debates is much better than in Spain, mainly the nearest camera is very, very interesting.
And the regionalisation proposed by Royal is very very dangerous. In Spain it has been a complete disaster.

[Errigal]

Originally Posted by Theobald

Sarkozy was good, very good, playing the role of the calm and relaxed leader, the Mitterrand-like "quiet force", while Royal was only criticising him and even lost her temper.

I watched the debate on TV5 and got the same impression of Sarkozy and Royal. Whether he is good or bad for France I can't say, but Sarko would clearly not just be a puppet in the style of the "Freedom Monkey" Bush. In the US, it is Vice President Cheney who has been around Washington since he failed university while President Bush had only a loose connection to power through his father. Sarkozy, unlike Merkel, Blair and Bush, has spent years in and around government and therefore has his own alliances.

[Theobald]

But who is worst, an atlantist and liberal puppet like Blair or Merkel, or an intelligent, respected, charismatic guy who is atlantist and liberal because these are his own ideas and opinions, and what he believes to be the best for his country ? The former kind of politicians cannot expect to be taken seriously, the latter one is clearly dangerous precisely because he is not a buffoon or a puppet and has his own independent political network.

[Errigal]

It is a tough question but I would say it's better to have the person who is in charge de jure also be the one in charge de facto. Bush, and to a lesser extent Blair, is a puppet, but a puppet who sometimes exercises real power.

As well, Royal seems to be a woman from a good military family who wants revenge on her father. In short a traitor to her class; which is not a healthy or mature motivation for a President.

[Franze]

Theobald and Carynx, and all french I ask, which is the number one problem of France?

[Theobald]

Originally Posted by Peter

Theobald and Carynx, and all french I ask, which is the number one problem of France?

The French.

The French (like most Nations) are a weak people, always needing a strong leadership. Sometimes a political genius comes out, backed by a powerful elite, taking the best out of everyone and leading the Nation up to greatness. That's Napoleon and his adventures from Madrid to Moscow, de Gaulle and the Trente Glorieuses, Joan of Arc and the later liberation of France from English hands, Louis XIV and his Golden century. But geniuses and heroes are also human, thus they die. And though often their successors fight hard to defend their legacy and try to keep the same direction, more often than not they do not succeed. That's Louis XV & XVI and the end of the Ancient Regime, that's the post-1815 19th Century, that's the current 5th Republic. The whole History of France is about that, a succession of "Grandeur & Décadence". We are in a time of complete decadence, waiting for the leader who will take us out of that s**t. Sarkozy probably thinks he is this man. I tend not to think so. Wait and see...

[Theobald]

On a side note, today I saw a pathetic and ridiculous spectacle in my streets, Sarko-Boys parading in vans (that were almost wholly covered by Sarkozy's posters) with UMP flags, shouting "Sarkozy for President!", and of course protected by cars of police and vans of CRS. They seemed so happy that I thought for one or two seconds that Sarkozy had already been elected. When I came back home I understood the source of their little "Sarko Pride" procession : the newest poll, 55% for Sarkozy and 45% for Royal. As we say in French, "ils vendent la peau de l'ours avant de l'avoir tué" (they sell the bear's skin before having killed him").
I'd like to see these ones fighting Sunday's riots...

[Franze]

Originally Posted by Theobald

The French.

The French (like most Nations) are a weak people, always needing a strong leadership. Sometimes a political genius comes out, backed by a powerful elite, taking the best out of everyone and leading the Nation up to greatness. That's Napoleon and his adventures from Madrid to Moscow, de Gaulle and the Trente Glorieuses, Joan of Arc and the later liberation of France from English hands, Louis XIV and his Golden century. But geniuses and heroes are also human, thus they die. And though often their successors fight hard to defend their legacy and try to keep the same direction, more often than not they do not succeed. That's Louis XV & XVI and the end of the Ancient Regime, that's the post-1815 19th Century, that's the current 5th Republic. The whole History of France is about that, a succession of "Grandeur & Décadence". We are in a time of complete decadence, waiting for the leader who will take us out of that s**t. Sarkozy probably thinks he is this man. I tend not to think so. Wait and see...

Thanks for the answer, in Spain, there are mainly the same problems, we have had great men and women, powerful, strong and faithful to Christ and Spain but sadly we have had and now we have garbage politicians.
I think it happens in almost all Europe.