Word: center
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1970-1979
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...partnership with moderate President Valery Giscard D'Estaing upon his election in 1974. Ever since, however, they have looked askance at many of Giscard's liberal policies and reform attempts. Chirac's political ambitions, plus the Gaullist fear of Giscard's mildly leftist tendencies, provoked a split between the center and right which culminated in Chirac's election as mayor of Paris last spring. But by summer, a greater fear of the outright Marxism of the Communists led Chirac and other rightists to fall back in line with Giscard's ruling coalition...
...majority of the electorate, according to recent surveys, and by cooperation the left could capture a controlling majority in the 487-member National Assembly. But failure to form a solid coalition dooms the leftist parties to defeat. Because of the intricacies of the "scrutin majoritaire," the French electoral system, center and right parties could combine to beat out a divided left in the runoff elections...
Meanwhile Giscard D'Estaing is doing all he can to hold together the center coalition which currently governs France. In his New Year's message to the French people, Giscard called for a new spirit of "unity." "If only the lads of France could join hands together," he pleaded, asking for a national commitment to reconciliation. Clearly, Giscard would like to draw both Gaullists and Socialists back to the center, and rebuild the same coalition which brought him the Presidency...
...time, supporters of the right have turned growingly insistent on their own views, and appear threatened and repulsed by the left. They oppose even some moderate reforms demanded by the workers, and are asking for reflationary stimulus by the government to help expand the economy. Politics remains polarized: the center is becoming a shaky margin of retreat from the explosive extremes of right and left...
...recently appeared in the book stalls in Paris, highlighting the situation. One, "The 180 Days of Mitterand," describes the rise and fall of a leftist government following the elections. The other, "The 180 Days of Giscard D'Estaing," describes an equally swift victory and failure for the currently ruling center coalition. The tragedy of modern France is that either occurrence appears equally likely, at present...