You are reading a single comment by @Howard and its replies.
Click here to read the full conversation.
-
It was a huge departure from the political status quo and went against any appeal to populism. It was, I think, a hugely unpopular commitment and took a huge amount of effort and commitment to steer through the administrative bureaucracy and public opinion.
Sounds like governmental suicide. Was it Chirac? Did he get away with it because the only alternative at that time was the National Front, and he was riding a landslide?
Howard
benborp
It was a huge departure from the political status quo and went against any appeal to populism. It was, I think, a hugely unpopular commitment and took a huge amount of effort and commitment to steer through the administrative bureaucracy and public opinion. I think that the genesis was a personal appeal to the President who then included the commitment after all draughts of his address were finalised. Basically one man had the power to say 'make it so.'