Sunday, May 15, 2011

Leadership Transition

I don't rule out foul play, but that appears to be irrelevant at this point. This man has long had a "reputation", but this is remarkable given his intent to run for the French presidency.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn, head of the International Monetary Fund and a presidential hopeful in France, has been arrested and charged with attempted rape, criminal sexual act and unlawful imprisonment, New York City police and the IMF said on Sunday.

His personal attorney, William Taylor, confirmed that Mr. Strauss-Kahn would plead not guilty to the charges today, suggesting he will be arraigned on Sunday.

The arrest is set to change the course of France's presidential elections next year, likely depriving the Socialist Part of its most promising candidate and boosting the chances of reelection for French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

"Whatever the outcome of the procedure is, [Mr. Strauss-Kahn] will not be able to run for president," said Jacques Attali, a former advisor to France's late Socialist president Francois Mitterrand.

The arrest of Mr. Strauss-Kahn, 62 years old, who was apprehended by police in the first-class section of an Air France plane minutes before it left New York for Paris on Saturday night, also throws into disarray the leadership of the IMF, whose intervention has played a key role helping European leaders manage the continent's debt crisis.

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