The Night Of The Long Knives
Only This Time, In France
By Pejman Yousefzadeh Posted in Featured Stories | Foreign Affairs — Comments (2) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
And now, the recriminations.
Read on . . .
Let the finger-pointing begin. Ségolène Royal's defeat on Sunday night left the French Socialist party in disarray and searching for someone to blame. There is hardly a shortage of scapegoats.
It is the party's third consecutive presidential defeat. The Socialists now face the question of whether they can ever regain power without ditching their anti-capitalist rhetoric, as the mainstream left has done across almost all of Europe.
Ms Royal can argue that she did better than Lionel Jospin, who in 2002 led the Socialists to a humiliating third place behind Jacques Chirac and far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen. But France's main opposition party still faces a wrenching crisis.
"The left is not credible on so many issues, from the 35-hour working week to immigration and law and order," says Dominique Reynié, professor at Sciences Po university.
"It is the fault of the left collectively. Ever since their [parliamentary election] defeat in 1983 they have never questioned their fundamental ideology, only thinking they needed to change tactics," he says.
In many ways, the article is too kind to Royal. Consider the following:
Young and moderate voters were drawn by her Blairist ideas and taste for smashing party taboos on the 35-hour week and young offenders. By embracing the internet to invent a new participative style of campaigning, the glamorous 53-year-old seemed to be breaking the political mould, becoming the first woman with a shot at the Elysée palace.
Maybe I missed it, but I didn't perceive any smashing of taboos concerning the 35 hour workweek. Quite the contrary; in the debate they had concerning the 35 hour workweek, it was Sarkozy who took a hammer to the idea and Royal who defended it. Perhaps the Socialists' problem was not that they were represented by someone who constituted a break with the past, but rather, someone who personified it.
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The Night Of The Long Knives 2 Comments (0 topical, 2 editorial, 0 hidden) Post a comment »
erp
The real reason for Royal's defeat was that she outraged millions of her fellow Frenchwomen by committing the unforgivable faux pas of wearing white shoes before Memorial Day. h/t Drudge
As in the US with the left. It cant be that people heard the message and rejected it. It must be someone's fault. Because the policies are "correct". Must be the VRWC, those stupid people!