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French president-elect Nicolas Sarkozy plans to waste no time making France a friendlier place for business — and a less inviting place for criminals and would-be immigrants — but first he must win control of parliament in new elections next month.

Sarkozy, a U.S.-friendly conservative and an immigrant’s son, defeated Socialist Segolene Royal by 53 percent to 47 percent with about 85 percent voter turnout Sunday.

The win gave Sarkozy a strong mandate for his vision of France’s future: He wants to free up labor markets, calls France’s 35-hour work week absurd and plans tougher measures on crime and immigration.

“The people of France have chosen change,” Sarkozy told cheering supporters in a victory speech that sketched out a stronger global role for France and renewed partnership with the United States.

U.S. welcomes new leader
The Bush administration on Monday welcomed Sarkozy’s election as an opportunity to strengthen relations with France.

“We certainly look forward to cooperation with the French,” White House press secretary Tony Snow said Monday. “And we know that there are going to be areas of disagreement. But on the other hand, there are certainly real opportunities to work together on a broad range of issues.”

Exit polls offered some surprises. Some 46 percent of blue-collar workers — traditionally leftist voters — chose Sarkozy, according to an Ipsos/Dell poll. Forty-four percent of people of modest means voted for him, as did 32 percent of people who usually vote for the Greens and 14 percent who normally support the far-left. The poll surveyed 3,609 voters and has a margin of error of about 2 percent.

A headline Monday in Les Echos newspaper, a financial daily, read: “President Sarkozy: a wide majority for reforming the country in depth.” In Le Figaro newspaper, Jean d’Ormesson wrote: “Fasten your seatbelts. This will be quite a ride.”

Sarkozy’s is certain to face resistance from powerful unions to his plans to make the French work more and make it easier for companies to hire and fire.

Over the next few days, Sarkozy “will retire to somewhere in France to unwind a little ... and to start organizing and preparing his teams,” said Francois Fillon, an adviser often cited as the leading candidate for prime minister.

With his family, Sarkozy left his Paris hotel Monday — dressed casually in jeans — en route to his retreat. The location was not revealed.

^ hey hey what did I tell ya wink

Sling shot!!!!!


lets piss off the proletarait even more!!!!!


Hope he gets bit in the a** with a 2nd Student/ French revolution

That's not what he's talking about, he's talking about last spring's student protests whenever Chirac tried to change France's labor policies and took away the students' job security. The students, naturally, got pissed that they could now be fired without cause due to the new policies, and rebelled.

Not if both had similar causes, similar ...proletarian roots?

Not if both had similar causes, similar ...proletarian roots?

I was reffering to the Student revolution of 1968 which Chirac is attacking and trying to take down its effects.........

Blaming the Committee for Public Saftey for everything is much to simple :p

The jacobins were actually highly successful at rebuilding France's economy, and because of their use of price controls people could actually eat, not to mention that their total war policies gave France one of the finest armies on the continent. Hence why as soon as they offed Robespierre the Thermindorian reaction didn't have any kind of clout because they immediately stopped the price control to serve their masters - and there was massive reaction.

Essentialy, this whole Sarkozy thing is because A. the socialists ran a terrible candidate and B. because the Communist Party of France has lost much of its influence to the far right - which elected Sarkozy.