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Europe
Villepin will not run in presidential election
2006-06-29
Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin who is a man said yesterday he has no plans to stand in next year's presidential election, preferring instead to concentrate on running the government.
No butterfly signatures for you on important documents!
Mr. Villepin was seen as a potential presidential front-runner when he was nominated prime minister in 2005, but his government has stumbled from one crisis to another in recent months and his popularity rating has slumped to near record lows.
Perhaps because you're incompetent? Perhaps because France is a slumping enterprise? Perhaps both?
The Prime Minister hinted he might be ready to support an election bid by his arch-rival within the conservative camp, Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy.
I don't buy that for a second.
Posted by:ryuge

#2  IIUC from what the liberals (eurosenses, free-market & libertarians) say here, a large part of french GNP growth is actually artificial, IE it is the growth of the expenses of the public sector. So, in the last few years, instead of having a 1,5% or so growth IIRC, France was actually in recession if you take only the private/merchant sector into account. Just sayin'.
Posted by: anonymous5089   2006-06-29 14:50  

#1  According to CNBC this morning, France showed a 0.5% growth in GDP for first quarter 2006. Actual growth! Not that Monsieur deVillepin deserves credit for it.
Posted by: trailing wife   2006-06-29 14:47  

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