The return of French presidential family drama
The French may have thought that by trading in President Bling-Bling for Monsieur Normal, they were putting an end to the tabloid frenzy that often accompanied President Nicolas Sarkozy and Carla Bruni. They clearly didn’t take into account Hollande’s partner Valerie Trierweiler who caused a stir in June by picking a Twitter fight with the ...
The French may have thought that by trading in President Bling-Bling for Monsieur Normal, they were putting an end to the tabloid frenzy that often accompanied President Nicolas Sarkozy and Carla Bruni. They clearly didn't take into account Hollande's partner Valerie Trierweiler who caused a stir in June by picking a Twitter fight with the president's ex, Socialist Party politician Segolene Royal, who was locked in a tough reelection fight at the time. Now, Hollande's son is stepping into the fray:
Thomas Hollande, 27, a lawyer, said the tweet had "stupefied" his father. "I knew she [Trierweiler] would do something one day, but not such a huge blow. It's staggering," the younger Hollande told the French newsmagazine Le Point.
"What I find reproachful about the tweet is that it put the private life into the public domain. It pained me on behalf of my father who absolutely detests anyone talking about his private life. It destroyed the normal image that he had constructed."[...]
The French may have thought that by trading in President Bling-Bling for Monsieur Normal, they were putting an end to the tabloid frenzy that often accompanied President Nicolas Sarkozy and Carla Bruni. They clearly didn’t take into account Hollande’s partner Valerie Trierweiler who caused a stir in June by picking a Twitter fight with the president’s ex, Socialist Party politician Segolene Royal, who was locked in a tough reelection fight at the time. Now, Hollande’s son is stepping into the fray:
Thomas Hollande, 27, a lawyer, said the tweet had "stupefied" his father. "I knew she [Trierweiler] would do something one day, but not such a huge blow. It’s staggering," the younger Hollande told the French newsmagazine Le Point.
"What I find reproachful about the tweet is that it put the private life into the public domain. It pained me on behalf of my father who absolutely detests anyone talking about his private life. It destroyed the normal image that he had constructed."[…]
Thomas Hollande said it was "logical" that he, his brother and two sisters no longer wished to see Trierweiler.
"What’s important is that we normalize relations with our father," he said.
Hollande’s family drama still doesn’t really hold a candle to some of his predecessors, but it should at least be enough to keep everyone occupied this silly season while Sarozy keeps a low profile.
Joshua Keating was an associate editor at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @joshuakeating
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