He asked for it!
Yesterday, Jean-Marie Le Pen declared himself the candidate of the "terroir," as opposed to Nicolas Sarkozy, a "candidate who is coming from immigration." Charming.
This raises many questions for Sarkozy. After spending so much time and energy pointing fingers at immigrants, Sarkozy must now address the fact he himself is the son of an immigrant. This in fact is a golden opportunity for him : at first he can highlight that he is the living proof that the children of immigrants can succeed in France. And then he can also hint that while the son of an immigrant, his father was not "that" type of immigrants, times were different etc etc... This is virulent, and will certainly get him jeers on the left. But it's tactically correct if he wants to attract Le Pen's voters. Sarkozy is not one to shy away from political controversy - in fact, much like G.W. Bush, he thrives on it. Every other day he says something outrageous, that blurs the campaign's narrative and throws off his opponents (the ministry of immigration and national identity, the pedophilia gene, et. al.)
For now, his lieutenants are screaming that they are shocked, shocked at Jean-Marie Le Pen's remarks. That's the first phase. Next, Sarko himself will intervene.
