Run, DSK, Run!
Could France soon see its first Jewish president?
February 17, 2010
After Israel and the United States, France has the third-most Jews of any country. Now, The Economist reports, French Jew Dominique Strauss-Kahn is his country’s most popular politician, and could become the first Jewish president of France (which of course excludes, say, 1930s Prime Minister Léon Blum). Strauss-Kahn (you can call him DSK) tried but failed to be the Socialist nominee for president in the last election—a vote eventually won by Nicolas Sarkozy, who has some Jewish blood but is a Catholic. Sarkozy attempted to co-opt DSK by appointing him head of the International Monetary Fund, but the strategy may have backfired, as DSK, a former French finance minister, has used the platform to enhance his reputation and is now poised to be a very formidable threat to Sarkozy come 2012. There are complications: DSK’s IMF stint isn’t set to run out till four months after the vote; there have been sexual harassment allegations (of which an independent probe acquitted him); he has a pretty plum job as it is, which he may understandably be unwilling to relinquish. On the other hand, in France, if it was good to be the king, then being the president must be at least alright, oui?
The Sarko-Slayer? [The Economist]
Marc Tracy is a staff writer at The New Republic, and was previously a staff writer at Tablet. He tweets @marcatracy.
