Reply #1: Despite Chirac's good record on Iraq

[Paschall]

He is a conservative. His government is getting ready to shuffle about 180,000 un- or underemployed workers off of a state-funded supplemental income program and dump them on local authorities, who don't have the money to handle this added client load. And he's drawn up a budget that violates EU rules on deficit limits. Yet he's cutting income taxes for the second year in a row (even though only half the French pay income tax; can you say "benefit the top 1 percent?")... once again, dumping responsibility for public services on local and regional governments who don't have the adequate funding.

Who's he blaming for his mess? The previous Socialist government of Lionel Jospin.

<snip> Last week, Budget Minister Alain Lambert blamed the shorter workweek for France's inability to meet budget deficit limits of 3 percent of gross domestic product set by the European Union. </snip>

Nonetheless, Chirac has promised repeatedly not to repeal the 35-hour work week. And the unions have already warned the government that if it tried to do so it would meet extremely stiff resistance.