Thursday, May 03, 2007

How'd the debate go?



The debate continued at home: "Oh, so you had dinner in front of the TV last night."

I don't watch debates for American candidates so I certainly wasn't going to do so for the French. Personally, I don't see much point in them, as they tend to be pretty scripted rehashes of stuff we've all heard before.

Both sides, of course, are claiming victory: The Sarkozy camp because of Royal's "imprecision" and not directly answering questions. Royal's side is crowing over the coups she gave regarding Sarkozy's lack of knowledge about Nuclear power and its environmental impact, his proposal to not tax overtime, and regarding the (lack of) facilities for handicapped students in schools.

One thing that surprised a lot of people was the role-reversal: Sarkozy, the aggressive one, appeared calm and restrained, whereas Royal (called the nurturer, the Mother-type) was on the offensive. Of course, there are scads of analysis regarding this political "sea change."

More particulars here (in English). Personally, I can't wait until Monday, when (hopefully) it'll be all over.

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