From an article in the NYTIMES: An intriguing idea has been gaining ground in France on the eve of President Bush's visit. It is that the much disliked president does not represent the true America, that the United States is a shining being or entity or thing to be honored on the D-Day beaches and distinguished from President George W. Bush himself.
Politicians speak of saying yes to America but no to Mr. Bush. The newspaper Libération warns Mr. Bush that he should not take President Jacques Chirac's expected expressions of gratitude as directed at him, but rather at America. Laurent Fabius, a former prime minister, says Mr. Bush is viewed "as the exact opposite of the values that make us love America."
The idea is very French. It is conceptual. It is subtle. It is intellectually pleasing. It projects the notion that France knows better than America what America really is or really should be. It harks back to the idea France shares with America: that the countries embody some eternal values and have a mission to export them to all mankind.
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