Sarkozy Summons De Gaulle's Statist, Anti-U.S. Spirit

Since the era of Charles de Gaulle, France has rebelled against the
American-style capitalism that put a ``Made in U.S.A.'' stamp on the world
economy.

Now, as convulsions on Wall Street shake the global financial system, French
President Nicolas Sarkozy is seizing the opportunity to remake the
free-enterprise model along more state-managed Gaullist lines.

Emboldened by the U.S. pursuit of a European-style bailout, Sarkozy has
packed his wish list for an upcoming international summit with calls for
everything from stiffer bank supervision and limits on executive pay to
state aid for hand-picked industries. While the moment is in his favor,
history is working against him: throughout the postwar era, French attempts
to subdue globalization and come up with an exportable economic model have
misfired.

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