Philippe Séguin is dead

[Antonio the Sixth]

He was the President of the french "cour des comptes", and former President of the Assemblée Nationale (1993-1997). Chiraquist, he was expected to become Prime Minister when Chirac became President. He also lead an alternative right-wing list for Paris mayoral election, against unpopular incumbent Jean Tibéri.

RIP.

[Umengus]

sad. A true gaullist.

[Hash]

Philippe Séguin, apart from being an old geezer, was also a known Eurosceptic in the latter part of his career (1992 on) and is also quite famous for being the RPR's top candidate in the 1999 Euros before dropping up suddenly when his Eurosceptic tone and his political ambition led to various Chiraquiens pressuring him to drop out.

RIP, but he isn't a hero of mine.

[big bad fab]

Ha !
I didn't think someone would have created a topic on Séguin's death....

He is/was my boss, you know.... I mean, my remote boss, as I work in a local public financial court.

And, well, with his project of reform scratching these courts and trying to centralize all this, while dropping old missions of controlling local public bodies, he was very unpopular among "us".

We'll see now if the bill will be stalled or, on the contrary, fasten because Séguin himself was hated by many parliamentarians... now he isn't here any longer, maybe they will hasten the vote, which would be a bad thing !

And who to replace him ?

Henri Guaino ?
Bernadette Malgorn (loyal Sarkozyst and soon beaten UMP leader in Brittany) ?
Michel Charasse (some talked about him in the Constitutional Council, but Sarkozy seems to prefer a lawyer who is a friend of him) ?
Nicolas Bazire (he was Balladur's first aide in 1993-95, but he is rich now in the private sector...) ?

Christine Lagarde will be kept in the government.
Charles de Courson (to please the NC and put a real and incorruptible parliamentarian out of the Assembly...) isn't very probable.

[Hash]

Michel Charasse would be an interesting choice. Mitterrand confident, former Socialist of the 'old rural SFIO' style, and a close friend of Sarkozy since 2007. He's also quite hated within the PS, especially by the Puy-de-Dôme PS. Though ironically the Socialists would probably prefer to cut all bridges with him, once and for all...

Malgorn is a good choice if Sarkozy is going for the traditional non-elected bureaucrat/'haut fonctionnaire' style. And I would not shed a tear of losing her in Breton politics, lol.

Would Sarkozy be ready to send Henri Guaino away?

[Antonio the Sixth]

RIP, but he isn't a hero of mine.

Neither of mine, if it's what you meant. Indeed I find a bit strange the dythirambic tone of the homages from the political world. However, he has certainly deserved a RIP thread in this board, and since nobody had created one, I decided to do.

Plus, he was only 66, which is quite young to die.

[Hash]

Indeed I find a bit strange the dythirambic tone of the homages from the political world.

Well, when you die they won't say you were a bastard, an old goon and that they personally hated the deceased. And it helps that Fillon was a Seguiniste for a good part of his political life...

That said, he's still one of the members of the old right who wasn't a crook (as Chirac's character said on Les Guignols, "le seul homme honnete du RPR") and he was not a flip-flopper like, say, Chirac or Bayrou.

[Bo]

May he RIP.

[k-onmmunist]

Ugh, Gaullism.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Indeed I find a bit strange the dythirambic tone of the homages from the political world.

Well, when you die they won't say you were a bastard, an old goon and that they personally hated the deceased.

Didn't a newspaper choose "globalement négatif" for title when Marchais died ?

You must be logged in to read this quote.

True. I don't like his views so much, but he was undoubtedly a honest man.

[big bad fab]

He died quite young, but he has always smoked BIG, drunk BIG, eaten BIG and f***ed BIG.
So, not illogical to see him pass away now....

To Hash: no, I don't think Guaino will be picked, it's too early.
In fact, I was afraid of Guaino first president of the Cour des comptes after the normal end of Séguin's term, in 2012, just before the elections: Guaino, without any big post (he wanted to be EDF's president...), would have been happy to take this as a lot de consolation !

It's a pity Valérie Pécresse is from the Conseil d'Etat (it would be a faute de goût to pick her, that even Sarkozy wouldn't do, because of sociological fighting between the grands corps... or would he ):
I would have been very pleased to greet her as the new first president after her (sad) defeat in March

[Antonio the Sixth]

He died quite young, but he has always smoked BIG, drunk BIG, eaten BIG and f***ed BIG.

Mechman would've said that he prefered quality to quantity...

[big bad fab]

He died quite young, but he has always smoked BIG, drunk BIG, eaten BIG and f***ed BIG.

Mechman would've said that he prefered quality to quantity...

In Séguin's case, I'm not able to assess quality...

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

Amusing to see how one of the only actual Gaullist has been loved by everyone, because all the homages, from every sides seem to be very sincere. Haven't heard about FN though.

Yay, France remains that Gaullist state overall.

Also, the fact he never had a lot of power might have played a role too.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Haven't heard about FN though.

I heard that Marine said something like "look at how he was right about EVIL MAASTRICHT TREATY AND EVIL EUROPE !!!1!1!".

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

Haven't heard about FN though.

I heard that Marine said something like "look at how he was right about EVIL MAASTRICHT TREATY AND EVIL EUROPE !!!1!1!".

Haha, even FN defends him!

[Hash]

Le Figaro has been the first media source, afaik, to talk about his successor:

http://www.lefigaro.fr/politique/2010/01/09/01002-20100109ARTFIG00124-l-elysee-en-quete-d-un-successeur-a-philippe-seguin-.php

There's Alain Lambert, UMP Senator from the Orne and President of the Orne CG. He's a pathetic and annoying sod, but was Raffarin's Budget Minister. Alain Juppé, even Didier Migaud (PS Senator and the Senate's Mr. Finances) and François Hollande are apparently evoked.

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

Hahaha, François Hollande...

The guy is just permanently tunned on 2012, he won't bury himself there. A shooting attempt from Le Figaro? Maybe the poorest redaction for French politics of the big 3 (Le Monde, Libération, Le Figaro), at least from what I can hear of Thréard and Trégaro, since I rarely read it, even on the net.

[Hash]

I much prefer Le Figaro's section on politics in that they report stuff on elections, party electoral strategy and so forth. Le Monde focuses solely on stupid day-to-day crap, and their electoral coverage has been in a rapid decline.

That being said, the French media is awful and there are very few real journalists in France (though Ottawa has even less).

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

I much prefer Le Figaro's section on politics in that they report stuff on elections, party electoral strategy and so forth. Le Monde focuses solely on stupid day-to-day crap, and their electoral coverage has been in a rapid decline.

That being said, the French media is awful and there are very few real journalists in France (though Ottawa has even less).

Yes, globally I'm fed up with a lot too, seems there remains a few lights though, but not that much, anyways that's a long time I no more read a lot of it, so I may miss things, but when I see guys like Thréard or Trégaro in Le Figaro, just damn. And still about Le Figaro, I can't judge them on the factual part they can provide I was merely speaking of the analysis/edito/hacking parts.

[Hash]

I rarely read any editorials on any newspapers, even less their so-called 'political analysis' since it's so full of crap that I have better things to waste my time on.

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

I rarely read any editorials on any newspapers, even less their so-called 'political analysis' since it's so full of crap that I have better things to waste my time on.

As for me, it's just that editorialists, and those of papers too, became trendy in other media, like radio and TV.

[Umengus]

I much prefer Le Figaro's section on politics in that they report stuff on elections, party electoral strategy and so forth. Le Monde focuses solely on stupid day-to-day crap, and their electoral coverage has been in a rapid decline.

That being said, the French media is awful and there are very few real journalists in France (though Ottawa has even less).

I agree. And USA are fantastic compared to french coverage. But USA are big.

[Umengus]

Amusing to see how one of the only actual Gaullist has been loved by everyone, because all the homages, from every sides seem to be very sincere. Haven't heard about FN though.

Yay, France remains that Gaullist state overall.

Also, the fact he never had a lot of power might have played a role too.

Le Pen's, father and daughter, have told good things about Seguin. The critics were by the extreme lefties (tautology !).

[Hash]

Yay, France remains that Gaullist state overall.

I read 'Getulist' the first time I saw that. I need to stop thinking about Brazil.