Sarko's temper flares again in response to a reporter's question about allegations that he took kickbacks from a weapons deal with Pakistan to fund his presidential campaign:

"And you! I've no evidence against you. But it would seem you're a paedophile. Who told me? I have an absolute conviction. I've seen the intelligence reports but I won't tell you which ones; I've seen someone but I won't tell you who, and it was word of mouth. But I have an absolute conviction you're a paedophile ... Can you explain yourself?"

After a 10-minute diatribe against various journalists, during which he kept returning to the paedophile analogy, he walked off declaring: "See you tomorrow, paedophile friends."

Well that should throw them off the trail.

While reading Eric Pape's informative profile of new French Foreign Minister Michele Alliot-Marie, I was struck by the fact that she's managed to keep such a low international profile despite her remarkable rise to power and pulling off the first ever ministerial "grand slam" -- she's headed the Justice, Interior, Defense, and Foreign Ministeries -- in French history. It seems to be largely because she's remarkably managed to rise to the highest levels of French government without a major personal scandal, accusation of political malfeasance, or high-profile feud.