New French Prez Heads to Primary Country

Wolfeboro bracing for possibility of famous resident's victory

(NEWSER) - George W. Bush had Crawford, Texas, Ronald Reagan had Rancho del Cielo, and if Mitt Romney becomes president, Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, is pretty sure it's next on the list of presidential retreats, Reuters reports. Locals are imagining the rustic-yet-ritzy lakeside resort as Romney's "White House North." Romney, after all, owns a $10 million, 11-acre estate on Wolfeboro's Lake Winnipesaukee, complete with a 5,400-square-foot, three-story home. And if he wins, it could change the face of the town. More»

Photo altered to reduce president's love handles

(NEWSER) - The French president’s “love handles” got a makeover this week when Paris Match Photoshopped them down to size in pics from his US holiday. An otherwise manly bare-chested shot of Sarkozy canoeing with his son shows his stomach to be distinctly slimmer than in Reuter’s original photo. Another French mag amused its readership this week with a before-and-after comparison. More»

Nicolas Sarkozy has left the building

(NEWSER) - France today installed Socialist Francois Hollande as its new president for the next five years, replacing conservative Nicolas Sarkozy with a mandate to ease up on the austerity measures with which Europe has fought its economic crisis. Hollande, the first Socialist to have access to France's nuke codes in 17 years, promptly called for "compromise" in Germany's stripped down approach to the crisis, reports the BBC . He'll name a prime minister and fly to Berlin this afternoon to face the music—and Angela Merkel, who supported Sarkozy—there. More»

...But François Hollande might be even more simpatico with Obama administration

(NEWSER) - France's election was something of a can't-lose proposition for the Obama administration. On the one hand, the US isn't pleased to see the backside of Nicolas Sarkozy, an ally so steadfast that in France he was sometimes called "Sarko the American." Sarkozy, after all, was in lockstep with the US on Iran, Libya, and other foreign policy issues. Incoming president François Hollande isn't likely to be nearly as accommodating in that arena, the New York Times reports. More»

President-elect has a packed first 40 days

(NEWSER) - Following last night’s victory over Nicolas Sarkozy , Francois Hollande will have to jump right in to his new role—he will be sworn in as France’s president next Tuesday, the BBC notes. What does his election mean?

• Hollande has vowed to renegotiate the eurozone budget treaty Sarkozy championed along with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, but the German government today is trying to cut that off at the pass, calling it “not possible.”
• Though Hollande's election has fueled hope among many French hungry for jobs, economic growth, and the end of austerity, he faces the same debt problems Sarkozy did. Der Spiegel notes that Hollande knows just how tough is the job ahead of him: Rather than appearing celebratory last night, the unsmiling victor “seemed tired, weak, and overwhelmed,” the paper reports.