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Politics : Just the Facts, Ma'am: A Compendium of Liberal Fiction -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Sully- who wrote (35455)	5/29/2005 9:56:51 PM
From: Lazarus_Long	Respond to of 90947

Could it be that the French people aren't as stupid or corrupt as their leaders? I have assumed that for decades. No longer a projection- -it's a done deal. French reject EU constitution Overwhelming negative surprises many click here French President Jacques Chirac is left scrambling for his political life in the wake of an overwhelming rejection of the EU constitution by voters. The referendum drew a 56 per cent negative response. Polls had suggested the referendum might fail, but impassioned pleas from Mr Chirac and others -- even the German government -- had appeared to close the margins before the vote, giving the sense of momentum moving toward approval. Instead, the margins actually grew. President Chirac had said that he would not resign if the referendum failed but that now appears questionable. Mr Chirac has said he will issue a statement about the future of his government in the next few days. At the very least, his unpopular prime minister, Jean-Pierre Raffarin, will go and his cabinet will be reshuffled, observers say. The constitution must be accepted by all 25 EU member states to be ratified, with a deadline set for November 2006. Few think that another referendum in France would succeed, at least under a Chirac government. But Mr Chirac's term of office -- unless he resigns -- extends to 2007. Particularly troubling for the constitution -- and for the EU -- were the reasons for the no vote, which, in addition to being a rejection of Mr Chirac, centred on economic issues. Unemployment is high in France and many feel the economy is being weakened by its membership in the EU. The Netherlands will hold another referendum on Wednesday. Polling shows voters there are also likely to reject the constitution. Reactions around the EU were guarded, according to Deutsche Welle, which said: # German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said that France's rejection of the EU constitution was regrettable and presented Europe with "great challenges". # The President of the EU Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, described the no vote as a problem which had to be solved. # German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder said the French rejection was a setback but did not spell the end of the road for the treaty. According to the Financial Times, the referendum planned in the UK is likely now to be shelved altogether. Germany ratified the constitution on Friday without a popular vote, making it the ninth European government to sign on to the charter. So far, Austria, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain have approved the constitution. 30-May-2005 nbr.co.nz

To: Sully- who wrote (35455)	5/29/2005 10:06:59 PM
From: Lazarus_Long	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 90947

I KNEW IT! IT'S OUR FAULT! Why did French voters reject the EU constitution? Mon May 30, 2005 2:07 AM BST Printer Friendly \| Email Article \| RSS By Kerstin Gehmlich PARIS (Reuters) - French voters rejected the European Union's constitution on Sunday for a host of reasons, not all of them to do with the contents of the charter. Some balked at having an economic model imposed on the EU which they say puts market interests ahead of social concerns. Others said the treaty does too little to protect workers and could encourage lower paid workers to flood France from new EU member states in eastern Europe, while some firms leave France for countries with lower taxes and labour costs. Some simply resented being bullied into something by French or EU leaders they consider out of touch, and many wanted to show their dissatisfaction with high unemployment, government cost-cutting and other economic problems. "It's a condemnation of the government's economic policy. It (shows) anger about unemployment and anxiety about economic precariousness and lack of jobs," said Mariette Sineau, a political scientist at Paris' Sciences Politiques university. "It's a giant smack in the face for the president (Jacques Chirac) above all. It was he who called the referendum, and who has been campaigning with great commitment for the 'Yes'." The snub for EU leaders widely regarded as bureaucratic was also clear to see. Many voters resent what they see as France's declining role in the Union, especially with the expansion to 25 members last year, and regard the constitution as part of a plot to impose a British and American economic model on them. "The bottom line is (the French) think the European Union is bureaucratic and undemocratic. And they read the text and thought it was bureaucratic and undemocratic," said Emmanuel Le Masson, a political scientist in the city of Aix-en-Provence. He said many French people also regarded the text as impossibly complicated. "So they said they didn't want that one, they wanted one they could use and at least understand," Le Masson said. Other reasons cited for opposing the constitution included a perceived loss of French sovereignty and a defence policy which critics say would make the EU too dependent on NATO, and therefore the United States. Some said the constitution would pave the way for large and mainly Muslim Turkey to enter the European Union. Jose Manuel Durao Barroso, the head of the EU's executive Commission, said it was hard to read one defining message from the outcome of the referendum. "We cannot draw a very simple message (from the result) except that a majority voted against. Why? The reasons presented are contradictory," he said. "Some say it's because Europe is going too far, others say no, no we want a different Europe, others say we want more Europe but not this Europe."