Nicolas Sarkozy 'asks Bruni to maintain a low profile'
London: French President Nicolas Sarkozy is said to have asked his wife Carla Bruni to maintain a low profile, following complaints that she has been wielding too much political influence over her husband.
According to French media reports, Sarkozy has asked the former supermodel-turned singer to take a back seat amid a growing chorus of disapproval from his Right-wing allies about her "luvvy" Left-wing influence.
"(Now) her husband has asked her not to intervene
on (political) subjects. And this doesn't bother her," British
newspaper 'The Daily Telegraph' quoted a friend of Bruni as
telling the '20minutes.fr' website.
In fact, members of Sarkozy's UMP party accuse him
of being bewitched by Bruni -- recently described by a leading
French society magazine as the "new Marie-Antoinette" -- and
forgetting his own camp.
"Nicolas is subjugated by a model wife who is richer
than him and globally known and who constitutes a war trophy
as she comes from the Left," said one. "Is it the fault of his
wife? ... he no longer likes his electorate," said another.
Another unnamed member of Sarkozy's party even alleged
in the magazine that Bruni was responsible for "most of the
head of state's woes in this turbulent autumn".
Sarkozy's approval ratings are at their lowest since
his 2007 election -- just 39 per cent according to one poll --
and he is desperately trying to woo back his core conservative
electorate ahead of regional elections next March.
Bruni was seen in public only once in the past month
and didn't accompany her husband on a recent state visit.
Rumours that she is keeping out of the public eye
because she is pregnant are totally unfounded, according to
Jacques Séguéla, the advertising tycoon at whose dinner party
they met. "It's completely false."
Bureau Report