Political News From France...
Rational Nation U S A Purveyor of Truth BBC - France's far-right National Front (FN) has failed to win a single region in the second round of municipal polls. The party was beaten into third place, despite leading in six of 13 regions in the first round of voting a week ago. The centre-right Republicans finished ahead of President Francois Hollande's governing Socialist Party. SKIP Analysis: BBC's Hugh Schofield in Paris There can be no hiding that the results of the elections are a big personal blow to Marine Le Pen. She has lost the chance to govern a region and show the world that her party is serious. She has been reminded that however strongly the FN performs, the gates of power remain tightly closed. But in a way that suits her fine. Because what it all means is that nothing in France has changed. The two main parties continue sharing out the goodies (in this case deliberately conniving to keep hers as well). Meanwhile unemployment rises; terror ...