Nicolas Sarkozy: Le petit homme furieux - "the small angry man"- by John Lichfield

For the complete report from the Independent Online click on this link

Le petit homme furieux - by John Lichfield

In the green depths of rural Normandy, the posters of the 12 presidential candidates grin from the official billboards. Only one poster has been defaced: that of Nicolas Sarkozy.In the concrete entrails of the Paris suburbs, the same 12 faces grin from the same posters. Only one poster has been defaced: that of Nicolas Sarkozy.

If you go to a Sarkozy rally, you see an angry little man in a dark suit. He talks well. He sometimes talks sense. But he always seems to be angry. He is angry with the way France has been governed for 25 years. He is angry with his opponents. He is angry with bureaucracy, angry with criminals, angry with Beijing, Washington and Brussels.

Sarkozy is a teetotaller who binges on chocolate and sweets and runs 6km most mornings. To meet him is like meeting an over-active nine year-old. He finds it physically irksome to stay still. The French say they want an active president. They are not so sure they want a hyperactive one. It is Sarkozy's determination to be seen to be a Man of Action that leads him to errors of judgement.France needs a courageous man (or woman) to move things forward but also one capable of projecting a sense of steadiness and fairness. Sarkozy may or may not have the courage. Even many people on the centre-right doubt his capacity to generate calm.