Encore, Encore!

No phoenix was visible rising from the ashes of his career, but Dominique Strauss-Kahn last week experienced political rebirth by winning a parliamentary seat in a district north of Paris. The victory marked Strauss-Kahn’s return to French political life after resigning as Economy and Finance Minister in November 1999 amid suspicions of corruption. With national elections due next year, Strauss-Kahn’s campaigning skills and enduring popularity will be valuable to Prime Minister Lionel Jospin’s quest to return the Socialists to power.

As Economy Minister, Strauss-Kahn embodied the modern face of the Socialist Party, selling voters — and leftist allies — on such market-minded reforms as increased privatization, tax reduction and remunerative innovations like stock options. Though a return to government is far off, Strauss-Kahn “may even have a larger impact as a defining force within his party,” says political commentator Alain Duhamel. “Strauss-Kahn was popular as minister, but his real talent has always been making the left’s policies more intelligent and realistic.”

That intelligence and realism will give Strauss-Kahn a primary role in Socialist efforts to return to power in next year’s legislative elections, and in Jospin’s concurrent bid to unseat conservative President Jacques Chirac. The key to Socialist victory will lie in proposing policies attentive to traditional social-protection priorities, but also palatable to job- and wealth-producing businesses. That’s a balancing act Strauss-Kahn mastered in the past. As economic czar, Strauss-Kahn’s reformist pragmatism won the confidence of both financial markets and French voters — making him a favorite to succeed Jospin as Prime Minister in the event of a win by the left in 2002.

The taint of scandal changed those odds. With his popularity surging, Strauss-Kahn resigned under suspicion of pocketing $97,000 for bogus legal work before his 1997 appointment as minister. Though that payment was later proved legitimate, Strauss-Kahn faces trial in May on charges of backdating documents to prove his innocence in the case. Then last September Strauss-Kahn watched as a surreal scandal plaguing conservatives turned against him. The affair involved a videotaped confession by a since-deceased operative detailing an illegal financing scheme in the early 1980s and ’90s allegedly run by President Jacques Chirac’s conservative Rally for the Republic — and implicating Chirac personally. Battered conservatives then watched gleefully as attention turned to Strauss-Kahn, who admitted that he’d been given a copy of the tape, presumably for use as a potential political weapon.

It now seems unlikely Strauss-Kahn risks worse than minor charges — and embarrassment — from the scandals, though his return to government before the elections still seems remote. His continuing popularity keeps alive the possibility of appointment as Prime Minister — but to attain that post, Strauss-Kahn must first help his Socialist-led coalition to win next year’s electoral battle.

Tapie Gets a Rematch
Another notable comeback was staged last week in Marseilles where Bernard Tapie returned to run its doleful soccer club, Olympique Marseille. Tapie’s first stint there from 1986-1994 ended in a five-month prison term on multiple corruption convictions, but not before he’d trans-formed OM into a powerhouse, winning four national titles and France’s only pro European crown. His popularity allowed him to launch a political career that peaked with election to Parliament in 1989 and a 1992 appointment as Urban Affairs Minister. But legal authorities investigating Tapie’s businesses uncovered evidence of fraud, embezzle-ment and tax evasion — including financial irregularities at OM. Shortly before prison doors slammed behind him in 1997, new investors bought the humiliated and financially ruined OM. Despite invest-ments of $125 million since — mostly on new talent — OM stands at the brink of relegation and fans are furious. In desperation, the new owners turned to Tapie to save his old outfit, giving him control of team management and a reported stake in the club. Can political rehabilitation be far away?