Monsieur President

[kskiska]

Fred Gion

The vacation, the attitude, the entourage - say it isn't so

As some of you may remember, I wrote a Viewpoints column back in November about my ambition to leave France – where I was born and raised – and buy a ranch in Texas and become a sort of cowboy.

(snip)

First, there's the five-week vacation. Even in France, we had to wait for socialist President Francois Mitterand to have a five-week paid vacation voted into law. Besides, most people I know, with serious jobs, don't go away for more than three weeks in a row.

Then, there's the more troubling transformation of the office of the vice president. The current U.S. administration seems to be functioning on the president-prime minister plan devised by French President Charles de Gaulle. Most countries with a prime minister limit a president to honorary duties. But in France, president and prime minister both have enormous powers, and conflicts arise from this.

Now, the U.S. vice president, usually assigned to those honorary duties, is empowered like never before. This is French, very French, in a very bad way. Look at France – this system doesn't work.

But more than anything else, there's the aloofness. With the notable exception of President Giscard d'Estaing, all French presidents ended up in a thick-walled ivory tower. They traditionally are disconnected from real life by an airtight layer of close advisers. To access the office of Mr. Mitterand, one had to walk past the desk of his personal secretary, and believe me, that guy did a lot of screening. My sense that Mr. Bush is heading in that direction is extremely disturbing.

more…
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/viewpoints/stories/DN-gion_24edi.ART.Dallas.Edition1.13963a8e.html

[unrepuke]

1. Well, Bush claims to be spreading "Freedom". Is it still a euphemism for

"French" ?