Getting Kozy with France
May 8,2006

“Some in France call me Sarkozy the American. I am proud of it, I am a man of action, I do what I say and I try to be pragmatic. I share a lot of American values.”

- Nicolas Sarkozy, French President-Elect

Nicolas Sarkozy, an Ameriphile, is the newly elected President of France. First, Angela Merkel ushers in a conservative German government (despite backrubs from Bush). Now, Sarkozy does the same for France. This is a substantial development of significance for the entire E.U.

It was a short 4 years ago that a friend of mine introduced me to a book entitled The United States if Europe. In it, the author extols the virtues of a new socialist Europe and contrasts its bright future to that of the declining United States.

Forget that the conclusions are mostly wrong. The premise itself of a U.S./E.U. rivalry is misguided and myopic. The West is quickly figuring out that China and India are far more imposing powers. Guaranteed employment at 35-hour workweeks just won’t cut it.

The powerful union elite are in full crisis mode. University students can barely contain their anger. Rioting, a grand French pastime, has begun again in earnest – 400 cars were overturned and burned on election night alone.

Get ready for one hell of a ride. The relevance of the E.U. is in the balance. And, not only is the U.S. in the same struggle as the E.U., but Sarkozy has pinned his success to that of the U.S. through his rhetoric and values. Should Sarkozy fail to revive the stagnant French economy and the flight of its rich, the result may be a liberal backlash on both sides of the pond. This would exacerbate an already widening power shift to the East. The Asian century may well have begun.

Time to get Kozy with France.

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