Posted on 05/17/2011 2:43:11 PM PDT by nickcarraway
The arrest of Dominique Strauss-Kahn on charges of sexually assaulting a hotel cleaning woman in New York City is a personal humiliation for the French politician, but it is also a black mark on the International Monetary Fund that chose to overlook his previous sexual behavior. It will be fascinating to see how the grandees of French and international financial politics handle this one.
Mr. Strauss-Kahn is entitled to the presumption of innocence, and his attorney says he will plead not guilty. Some in the French press and even a French government minister are suggesting that the 62-year-old Socialist Party panjandrum may have been set up by his rivals. The charges are stunning enough—and French politics is strange enough—that we suppose anything is possible, but such a conspiracy would have to include a large number of players.
WSJ Europe editorial page editor Brian Carney explains the policy impact of Dominique Strauss-Kahn's arrest.
The facts of the case as reported by New York police so far do not look promising for the IMF managing director. The woman who entered to clean the Frenchman's $3,000-a-night Sofitel suite at midday on Saturday reported the incident immediately. She told police that Mr. Strauss-Kahn emerged naked from the bathroom, pursued her down a hallway and pulled her into the bedroom. She escaped and he then chased her again and dragged her into a bathroom.
In other words, this is not a case in which misunderstandings about mutual consent are at issue. The charge is the unlawful imprisonment and attempted rape of a vulnerable hotel employee trying to do her job. Police also say that Mr. Strauss-Kahn fled the hotel in a rush, leaving behind his cellphone and other personal items.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
Sarko appointed DSK to the IMF to get his most powerful potential political challenger out of France.
The pre-trial has aroused vicious virulent anti-American comments and articles by French media and political elites in, as well as on blogs in France.
What the MSM here seems to be leaving out, as Stuart Varney said today is that DSK is a SOCIALIST, and was, until Saturday, the leading contender to be the candidate for President of France of the SOCIALIST PARTY.
DSK did not travel on official IMF business to NY. He was on personal business, to visit his daughter who is a grad stiludent at Columbia.
The IMF has already thrown him under the bus. They have stated he was not on official business and cannot claim immunity under some UN agreement. He is not a Diplomat, does not represent France, and has no immunity.
If he did, do you think he’d be sitting in a cell at Riker’s?
Maybe you should read the articles. In New York state, the law is, it’s up to the courts to decide what official business is. The bottom line is that until the court decides he doesn’t have diplomatic immunity, it’s an open question. His lawyer may be waiting to bring it to the court. The U.S. government usually sides with this type of person over U.S. citizens. If the State Department can have their way, he will be allowed to leave the country.
How do you know he’s not the leading contender now? At least 60% of French people believe it was a conspiracy.
DSK is not a Diplomat. He does not travel on a Diplomatic Passport. If he did, they would have never been able to get him off the AF flight.
The IMF, from which he just resigned, was his employer. They say he was not in NY on IMF business, therefore no immunity.
The immunity wouldn’t be diplomatic, it would have come from some international treaty agreement with the UN
DSK is not a Diplomat. He does not travel on a Diplomatic Passport. If he did, they would have never been able to get him off the AF flight.
The IMF, from which he just resigned, was his employer. They say he was not in NY on IMF business, therefore no immunity.
The immunity wouldn’t be diplomatic, it would have come from some international treaty agreement with the UN
The Socialist Party has moved on, trying to unite behind another candidate.
The French love conspiracies. They have an innate hatred and distrust of the Police, of the Law, and of government in general. The Socialists may be fools, but they aren’t suicidal.
Now that the initial shock has worn off, and women are coming out of the woodwork claiming what everyone already knew about DSK, he is toxic.
A new story has surfaced about his involvement in a rape in a hotel in Mexico... Se MO.
They might believe it was a set up which is ridiculous, but they wouldn’t want him representing France.
IMO he was a fatally flawed candidate from the beginning for many reasons. Dont think he was the strongest candidate. All that is moot now, and Sarko is back in the running. Latest polls show a probable runoff between Sarko and Francois Hollande. Marine le Pen’s star is fading,
thank God!
The political career of DSK est fini.
The United States does not give the IMF $180 billion every year. The IMF does not require an annual contribution from member countries, only a quota which is the total amount which must be contributed.
The IMF accounts for country contributions in SDR's (special drawing rights), which are made up of a combination of currencies. According to the IMF website, the US now has a contribution of 42 billion in SDRs in this fund, which is today worth about $67 billion.
During the financial crisis the IMF did set up an additional fund of $500 billion, of which the US contributed $100 billion in 2009. This was a one time contribution, not an annual payment.
I read that this trip was “personal” so the diplomatic immunity he’d have been entitled to if he were here on official IMF business does not apply.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.