Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - November 6, 1981, Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg free november 1981 7 prance is moving towards by Jim Hoagland Washington Post Francois the president of chose a Juicy red Strawberry from his breakfast bowl and with a delicate Pivot of the wrist brought it up to his Mouth just As he finished saying that the palestinian problem was not something he had nor Mitterrand observed to an american journalist munching Corn flakes beside it might just be a problem that no one could in his sixth month in Mitter Rand has settled in As a medium sized Man Content to direct a medium sized world Power and to enjoy its limit rather than trying to follow through on the much grander geopolitical designs of his patrician a reduces Valery Giscard in a 90minute conversation it became Clear that the list of global problems that Mitterrand does not recognize As de manding his involvement is impressively he is intent on reshaping the French Economy to fit Frances to protect it from the giant economic forces he sees moving across the Globe through multinational corporations and the disorderly trading patterns that have been traced by the inflation and Dollar shocks of the Mitterrand has been insistent on carving put for himself one Niche on the International and that is the unusual one of being a French socialist president who wholeheartedly supports americas nuclear rearmament pro including the controversial deployment of a new generation of nuclear missiles in Europe that will be Able to strike into despite the lingering image for Many americans of Charles de Gaul Les France As americas reluctant Mitterrand has supported the nuclear program with More vigor than any other euro Pean and he has been Able to do it without provoking the kind of domes tic opposition that is rending West Germany ruling social democratic shaking the belgian and dutch splitting Britain labor party and beginning to stir in de Gaul Les legacy Mitterrand ability to do this is in Large part a legacy inherited from de the Titan of a ruler who scorned Mitterrand during his lifetime but who in Many ways paved the Way for de Gaulle made nuclear weapons and National Independence synonymous terms for including finally the French communist party that is happily voting for Mitterrand defence the bruising fran co american squabbles of the 1960s May have provided some valuable inoculation in France against the viru Lent but relatively unsophisticated Brand of anti americanism that seems to be on the Rise in Europe but that does not explain Mitter Rands willingness to become a political Point Man on nuclear weapons for the Reagan the answer to that Puzzle lies in part in the historical and literary personality of Francois a Complex and fascinating and also in his concept of the nature of american and soviet rivalry in Europe during his recent visit to the United states before the Cancun speeches and toasts with a press conference and the breakfast he made Clear that his the Mission was to demonstrate to Ameri cans that they have one reliable ally in a Europe plagued with political and economic and that is Mitter Rands socialist in he told he was keenly aware that the United states is Frances indispensable ally against a soviet strategy of threatening the fashioning of a new French american entente had begun during discards seven year but it was a largely Covert due to i Scards feeling that Public acknowledgement of the improving relations and any support by him of nuclear plans would endanger his ambition to become the middleman Between Washington and a reporter who has interviewed both in Power quickly learns at breakfast with Mitterrand that the new president has abandoned that along with the haughty mannerisms and tone that helped de feat Giscard in his bid for reelection last anyone at the Elysee Palace in Giscard served scrambled eggs with truffles to in his last stories about discards supposedly royally inspired refusal to have anyone seated in front of him at a meal or to let including visiting Heads of state like Margaret be served before him circulated widely in France and helped the socialists por tray him in the Campaign As a would be the withdrawn Giscard defended himself poorly against these at Mitterrand prefers strawberries and has no preferences about his guests seating or the order of food a literary president at his frequent Long walks in the forests around his country Home at Latch in southwestern France have left him in apparent Ruddy Good rotund without being he seems slightly distracted with an Interior monologue even at the most intense moments of the his Graceful fingers knitting and Unk nit Ting themselves As if he is straining to write Down rather than say his a habit that May grow out of the eight polished though not profound books on modern France and politics he has if Ronald Reagan is an actor who has reached his greatest role in taking on the american presidency and its extensive Francois Mitter Rand is a writer who is composing his crafting a literary work to encompass the political realities and visions of Western Europe oldest centralized this is perhaps one of the keys to understanding the oddity of Mitterrand getting along so Well not Only with Reagan but also with Secre tary of state Alexander who presumably can appreciate the existential nature of Mitterrand task As Mitterrand frames a Good measure of his political perceptions against his finely developed sense of his analysis of revolution in Central at the Root of his extraordinarily strongly expressed differences with Reagan on Al has the sweeping Romance of a Novelty Gabriel Garcia Marquez or Carlos his russians resemble Tol Stoys the american profile he carries around is less clearly sex but aides say he admires Henry Miller and William Styron among modern one aide who has known him for a Long time thinks Mitterrand is condemned in his Early Days in office to French president Francois Mitterrand sees his country National interest As needing closer ties with the while keeping the soviets at arms fall Back on and he already knows this aide expects changes As the president deepens his knowledge of the official files and conversations that were relentlessly kept away from him since de Gaulle took you in America have no idea what it is like to be shut completely of the policy information network for 23 and How Long it takes to go through it when Mitterrand swept to an easy Victory on May Many observers concluded that Al Haig had lost what he reportedly called in private our Giscard had shown himself willing to use French troops in Africa to Shore up regimes Friendly and had easily swallowed the administrations Case on Al it was Clear that Mitterrand would be much More difficult on the third world it was not Clear if his Well pub Lici Zed suspicion of the russians would be forcefully enough expressed to per Suade the Reagan White House to Over look the third world differences and Mitterrand decision to name four communist party members to his cab inet and extend nationalization deeper into the Industrial the initial results weigh heavily in Mitterrand Haig and appear pleased with Mitterrand Strong which has been sharpened by his own successful Battles to tame the authoritarian French communist and by what they take to be his but in this inter which Mitterrand asked be paraphrased when rendered in English than quoted his thoughts on the soviet West Germany nuclear dilemma and the course of politics in Western Europe appeared to be still taking shape and Root As he digs through the dossiers kept away from him since Giscard believed in Leonid Brezhnev and thus believed that peace was primarily a technical prob Lem of finding the Means to identify and codify the shared goals Between the russian Leader and the american president of the thus he con stantly explored ideas for peace conferences and kept up his personal contacts with including the politically and diplomatically Damag ing trip to Warsaw in the Point of departure for Mitter Rand is that the russians do not want to fight a nuclear this generation of leadership As he the second world War too graphically to risk such that makes it he to negotiate an arms control agreement while his peer group Are in but he also believes that the soviet Union has adopted Une strategic de la a strategy of threat based on gaining a nuclear superiority Over the United states that would enable Moscow to demand whatever concessions it wants in and from by the calculations he has found in the Strate Gic plans left for him by Giscard and supported largely by american info he concludes that such a Situa Tion will exist by he has applauded reagans decisions on the my missile and by apparently without having closely at his enthusiasm stems from the belief that now that the russians know the americans Are serious about maintaining an Equi Librium of they will come to the negotiating he assumes the rus sians and americans Are rational enough at this Point to Stop the arms race if equilibrium is established for and he believes for All of the balance of forces is a balance of deployment of Persh ing 2 and cruise missiles in West Germany will reduce the time that the United states needs to strike russian targets with nuclear warheads from 20 minutes to five minutes by he will Lead the russians to Only americans can maintain the convenient fiction that there is a differ ence Between strategic and Tacti Cal nuclear Mitterrand strategic for americans Means weapons that will Cross the Atlantic and blast their for Europe Short everything is that is particularly True for West Mitterrand notes a major country that has the greatest concentration of nuclear War Heads inside and targeted on its Terri tory and which has no Independent control Over the decisions about those this underlies the enormous psychological and political problems the Bonn government faces in carrying out the nato deployment it is not Only on nuclear strategy that Mitterrand is Content to support publicly an american policy in a Way that contrasts vividly with Frances Previ Ous determination to be seen to be going it alone in world his decision to provide French troops to the Sinai peacekeeping Force to carry out the Camp David accords caught even French diplomats off particularly since the Middle East was the area of the world where France had most insistently sought to carve out a special right wingers furious much to the Chagrin of Frances righting Mitterrand does not seem to be running into any official american criticism for his plans to nationalize five major Industrial groups and 36 moves which will leave about 17 per cent of National production and nearly 100 per cent of French owned credit facilities under state Mitterrand aides assert that the sectors being which include arms electronics and heavy were carefully chosen because they Are of National size and importance and need Protection against multinational Iza Mitterrand himself rejects an International division of labor decided upon in new York or the recent Victory of his Good Friend Andreas Greece new socialist prime suggests that Europe socialist parties represent a new Force that can mobilize Public opinion More effectively than the so Cial democratic which have slipped in Scandinavia and West Ger Many in recent but Mitter Rand sees this As a mechanical result of the fact that the social whom he praises As True have been in or close to Power Long enough to have to accept the blame for the economic reverses of recent he studiously avoided predicting that Washington and Athens could now find a formula to avoid open de spite their ideological As Washington and Paris have been Able to do under he believes that the Reagan administration is simply mistaken in its analysis of what is happening in Al the guerrillas Mitter Rand Are not externally con trolled but have turned to insurgency and communist support Only because the United states keeps opposing they Are fighting for Liberty from archaic and repressive social Mitterrand says he recognizes that a serious problem exists for the United states in Central America and that often before a Leader has the Chance to reality will grab him by the More focus on Page 8 s social Howard and the 56 other new democrats who Are asking Mani Toba voters to let them form the government after november 17 never miss a Chance to Tell us How Sweet things Are in that one remaining bastion of social democracy to be found in North Pawley Hopes to create a second such right Here in on november since Saskatchewan has a new democratic albeit an nip government that acts More conserva at than everything that happens there is held up As an example of what could happen if Only Manitoban regain their political not quite being the Manitoba new democrats Are selective in their just in Case they happened to miss this account of a Saskatchewan car ried in the october 20 edition of the Regina Leader it is offered to free of charge or so that they May repeat it on the election the Story begins Saskatchewan government has shown a disturbing trend toward slowing Down spending on social programs in the past five a University of Regina professor new democrats if they follow their Normal pattern of Fred Cleverley should use because they usually climb on whatever bandwagon is Avail provided it is being driven by a University no after what opinion is being put since the Story despite the fact that our Sas Katche wans provincial wealth has been growing the proportion of it that the government spends on the departments of education and social services has been Graham assistant Dean of the University faculty of social said the dates Are since the time the period during which Manitoba conservatives have been in Power the nip governments social spending declined from 10 per cent of the total provincial wealth in 1976 to per cent in he while the Story does not define total provincial a Quick look at Manitoba budget figures show that this province spent 10 per cent of its total budget on Community ser vices in the last year the nip was in Power and spent the same percentage in the estimates for 198182 put the Manitoba figure at per in the Good professor since the government has placed a heavier emphasis on the eco nomic and resource sector at the expense of social spending pos Sec Mondary mental health child welfare and family ser vices have been among the services Law and order spending has been increased while assistance benefits re main shades of perhaps shades of Sterling but surely not in social democratic professor riches asked whether the pressure for economic growth in the 1980s will mean less Money for social the professor is quoted we May is our governments commitment to an increasingly just society what Are its priorities perhaps Howard Pawley should put the question to Allan the Asa Good newspaper put the professors charges to Dwain Saskatchewan minister social the minis As a Good minister did his Best to deny he said he didst think the Saskatchewan government Cut Back on social service spending in real terms from 1976 to Howe he said that spending on social programs had declined slightly As a share of the total provincial wealth because the provinces economic growth has been so there have been reductions in staff pertain areas of social the minister its a process of Belt tightening to get the House in the statement sounds like another Way of saying the same thing As the professor had More for economic less for human that is exactly what Manitoba new democrats say they doonesbury do q last this column dealt with the practice politicians have of stealing one another and using them As their one particular concerning the difficulties of a new pre Mier staying in was credited to Sidney the credit was Given after checking with several other peo ple familiar with the goings on at the Manitoba among those not consulted was the former Manitoba government House Warner he Tele phoned the Day after the column appeared to say that it was his not Sidney and that he had told it first in the Manitoba he could he provide the Hansard three hours he made another Telephone he had found the account of his telling of the joke in and it did predate the telling of the joke by Sid Warner need not have bothered looking it everyone believed him when he claimed to be the reason he was so readily believed is this elec Warner has retired and is not running for since he is no longer an Active what Possi ble reason could he have for not telling the exact truth As a retired he does not now even have to steal you Tsa if i flow this out a 1 p shot has realm set Backie pm lot is Lousy with rack and Whites that imn guard charges you hear i 7hihk is Fromme ;