WHAT? NO BROILED ELDERLY THIS SUMMER?:

Election cements control by Sarkozy (Elaine Sciolino, June 17, 2007, NY Times)

[T]he election was the first time in 29 years that a governing party has retained its majority in the lower house of parliament.

The victory by the "blue wave," as the political power of the right has been called, gives Sarkozy a mandate to push through his ambitious program to cut taxes, reinvigorate the economy, strip some labor protections, slash unemployment, impose curbs on immigration and make France more competitive globally.

In his one month since assuming office, Sarkozy has proved he intends to be both a nonstop and an unstoppable president. At home, he has shown signs of wanting to expand the power of the presidency, usurping some of the functions that traditionally have been carried out by the prime minister.

He has ordered a special summer session of the new Parliament (when much of the country is on vacation and not inclined to protest in the streets) to immediately consider his first set of bills on taxes, labor rules, universities, immigration and crime.