Word: duhamel
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...short answer is, unlike the government, Sarkozy was elected directly by the people for five years, and those same voters will grade his result in future elections," explains political analyst Alain Duhamel. He notes municipal balloting in March will be the first electoral "grade" Sarkozy faces since his presidential victory. And that, he predicts, will doubtless be followed by a major cabinet shuffle no matter what the result. While the first series of evaluations will not have taken place by then, announcing the system now underlines what Duhamel calls Sarkozy's "culture of obtaining results...
...ALAIN DUHAMEL, POLITICAL COMMENTATOR FOR RTL RADIO THE DAILY LIBÉRATION AND SEVERAL OTHER PUBLICATIONS...
...Sarkozy's election [in May] has made it clear that the majority of French voters not only want but expect reform and change," says political analyst Alain Duhamel. "They gave Jacques Chirac that same mandate and a parliamentary majority that was, back in 2002, considered massive, but he ended up putting reform on hold and backing away from the protests it caused. Sarkozy's main characteristic is action, and he'll move quick to distinguish himself from Chirac by delivering what he has promised...
...meet with resistance. The transportation issue, will doubtless provoke protests and strikes in the fairly near future. However, that's where his parliamentary majority will help see him through: whereas past protests have often forced governments to shelve announced reforms as waffling public opinion began sympathizing with strikers, Duhamel says the new electoral mandate will allow officials to pull together and ride out the storm. "There will be times of tension, and there may even be conflict and controversy, but Sarkozy has between a year and two years to really get things done without the risk of people souring...
...Duhamel does not believe the stronger than expected showing by the Socialists in this second round of voting diminishes Sarkozy's mandate. "The good news for the Socialists is they're really the only party on the left still standing anymore, and could by default become the party all leftist band around to mount a counter-offensive," Duhamel says. "The bad news is the Socialists have refused to regroup, reform, and put internal rivalries past them for years now, and only have two years ahead of the next [national] election to pull that off." That electoral test will...