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French Prez Sarkozy Revises History With Berlin Wall Facebook Pic

by Matthew Zuras on November 9, 2009 at 05:01 PM

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, known for his fastidious management of his own public image, may have posted a bit of historical fib on his Facebook profile. Earlier today, Sarkozy uploaded a photo of himself with Alain Juppé, former Prime Minister under Jacques Chirac, chipping away at the Berlin Wall with a pickax, exactly 20 years ago. He claims that (excuse our poor translation from the French) he left Paris for Berlin on the morning of November 9th, 1989, hearing reports that something was afoot in the blocs.

But at that time, Sarkozy was mayor of Neuilly-sur-Seine and the assistant general secretary for the right-wing political party RPR. Thus, his whereabouts are well-documented. According to council reports, Sarkozy was in Paris at a celebration marking the 19th anniversary of Charles de Gaulle's passing. Alain Juppé, himself, remarked today that he did not even arrive in Berlin until November 11th.

And yet Sarkozy is standing firmly behind his assertion that he was indeed there that evening. There seems to be no question that the photo is real, and that Sarkozy at some point or another did hack at the wall. But why would he lie? One current poll has shown Sarkozy's approval rating drop to 39-percent, partially due to allegations of nepotism and DVD piracy. It seems as though le presidént thought he could give himself a PR boost on such an epic anniversary, but he has drawn the opposite response.

We want to like Sarkozy, with his natty suits and his early opposition to the Iraq war. And, of course, who could dislike anyone married to the whimsical Carla Bruni, with her child-like portraits of heads of state? But even so, we -- and probably most of his constituents -- would like to see less historical revisionism on Facebook. (Come on. You don't expect that someone might Google where you were on one of the 20th century's most important days?) Poor form, Mr. President. [From: The Daily Mail]

Tags: berlin wall, berlin wall anniversary, BerlinWall, BerlinWallAnniversary, facebook, france, history, hoax, Nicolas Sarkozy, NicolasSarkozy, politics, sarkozy, top

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