SPIEGELONLINE INTERNATIONAL: French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife Cecilia are rumored to be on the verge of divorce. If confirmed, it would mark the end of the president's attempts to create an image of domestic harmony for political gain.
Cecilia Sarkozy is the only topic that evokes both loving adoration and admissions of vulnerability from France's habitually gruff president. "She's my strength and my Achilles heel at the same time," admitted Nicolas Sarkozy in the fall of 2003, long before he moved into the presidential Elysee Palace.
As late as this spring, he was convinced that voters would be charmed by his wife: "If you loved Jacqueline Kennedy, you are going to adore Cecilia Sarkozy." But then his confidence waned by summer: "At the end of the day, my only real worry is Cecilia."
For weeks, the signs have been mounting that the presidential couple may be headed toward an imminent break up. There is no other plausible explanation for her constant absence from public life. Compared to Cecilia Sarkozy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel's notoriously publicity-shy spouse Joachim Sauer looks like her constant companion. Is the Sarkozy Marriage On the Rocks? (more)
Mark Alexander
