01/19/2007
French Socialist presidential candidate Ségolène Royal suspended her spokesman for a month on Thursday after he called her partner, party leader Francois Hollande, her biggest handicap.
The move capped a bad week for Royal who has been hit by a series of poor opinion polls, a controversy over her tax returns and growing discontent in the Socialist party over her unorthodox campaign style.
"It is true that there is this period of tension. That is normal. Why? Because I am changing politics and I embody this change," a defiant Royal told France 3 television.
Royal's bid to become France's first woman president has not been helped by comments from Hollande, the father of her four children, promising to raise taxes if the Socialists won power. His announcement made last week wrong-footed Royal, who immediately distanced herself from the proposal.
"Ségolène Royal has only one defect -- her partner," her spokesman Arnaud Montebourg told Canal+ television on Wednesday.
He immediately said it was a joke and apologised for the gaffe, but the damage was already done and Royal announced she would suspend him from his duties for a month.
"I have given a yellow card to my friend Arnaud. It was necessary. I think everyone should realise that politics should be carried out on a different level without personal attacks," she said on Thursday.
Conflicting ambitions
French media have speculated whether Royal's speedy rise from a relatively unknown regional leader to presidential candidate had upset her private life with Hollande.
The pair have in the past refused to comment on their conflicting ambitions, with Royal saying "the presidential election is no soap opera". They have also denied rumours they were set to get married and ignored gossip they had split up.
The tensions appear to have worsened recently with rivals accusing Royal of ignoring the Socialist party hierarchy as she pursues what she calls a "participative" campaign, holding townhall meetings to hear the worries of the ordinary French.
She says she will use the encounters to help her draw up her policy programme, which she will not publish until February.
Her conservative rival, Nicolas Sarkozy, has already presented detailed policy proposals and some Socialist veterans
fear she has let him grab the political momentum.
Two opinion polls published this week predicted that Sarkozy would beat Royal in the April and May election, winning the second round run off by 52 percent to 48 percent. Previous polls over the past month forecast a tie or put Royal slightly ahead.
Government ministers have revelled in Royal's reversal of fortunes, accusing her of running short of proposals and having no clear tax policy. "The most annoying thing about this story for the Socialists is that the entire country discovers three months before the election that (Royal) has no, absolutely no idea on taxes," Finance Minister Thierry Bretton said on Thursday.
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