Nicolas Sarkozy, a president intoxicated with himself

The behaviour of Nicolas Sarkozy at a G8 press conference on June 7th has become a central topic of conversation. Was he really drunk? The video of his address has also been widely broadcast on the Internet, notably by YouTube. Richard Werly, who was present that day, gives his version of what happened. "Sarkozy arrived late, in a hurry. Tipsy? That didn't occur to me. He didn't stagger. He seemed rather surprised to find himself there, thrown before the journalists. ... To tell the truth, I found him rather off the mark. Not under the influence of alcohol. More over-vitamined. As if on drugs. His words sounded false. He wasn't the French Head of State that night, but rather 'Sarko' the energetic, well-meaning politician who is acting for your own good, smiling nervously, full of tics and bringing everthing back to himself: the victory snatched from Bush on the climate, the end of suffering in Darfour... ... What really shocked me was that Sarkozy didn't talk about the state of the world. He told us about himself, his 'frankness', his 'agenda' his 'cool'. He was drunk on his own words, his own powerful position."

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