Paul Martin is cutting short (by a day) his vacation in Morocco. Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew was in Paris, and International Development Minister Aileen Carroll is returning from South America. Deputy PM Anne McLellan is in contact “by phone”…
Do Canadian politicians ever vacation in Canada?
Meanwhile, others do find our country appealing in the winter – none other than the leading candidate to take over from France’s Chirac, Nicolas Sarkozy. Of course, the “Sagard” estate of Paul Desmarais ain’t exactly Waskesui.
Norm Spector passes along this observation from Konrad Yakabuski;
Mr. Sarkozy’s stay at Mr. Desmarais’ massive Sagard estate � so big it’s considered a pillar of the local economy � has the power elite in Montreal and Paris alike evergreen with envy. But it only confirms a universal truth: Whether your goal is 24 Sussex Dr. or the �lys�e, you need to know Paul Desmarais.
I find Sarkozy intriguing. He spoke briefly at the Herzliya Conference to assure Israelis of French amity:
http://www.herzliyaconference.org/Eng/_Articles/Articles.asp?CategoryID=194
Strangely, he didn’t mention his own Hungarian Jewish extraction — perhaps to avoid the neocon label — or his role in combatting anti-Semitism in France:
http://www.azure.org.il/19-berlinski.pdf
Yes, Sarkozy is an interesting sort. Very ambitious, he also has an extremely sharp mind. He will be the next French president, and then we shall find out how he intends to use that mind. While living in France in the 80s and early 90s I noted that he 1) has no problem ripping new ones for the left, which shows more courage than most French politicians on the right, who tend to go wobbly and allow themselves to be shouted down by the socialist-corporatists, 2) he tends to be pro-US, something he will need to modulate of course in order to gain power, but it’s there, under the surface.
Desmarais … he owns us. Haliburton doesn’t even come close.
I have no respect for the man after reading this article at Bloomberg:
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000039&sid=aLMtDnWxVt5g&refer=columnist_lynn
He’s an economic meddler who thinks he’s smarter than businesspeople, smarter than bankers, and smarter than consumers. I don’t call that “pro business”, I call that “just another commie central planner”.