The last straw that broke Bruni’s back

Life inside the Elysée Palace is very high on drama.

London, April 26: Life inside the Elysée Palace is so high on drama that it can make an excellent soap opera. And, the latest episode in the Sarkozy-saga involves Rachida Dati, the controversial Justice Minister, her baby and the fury of France’s glamorous first lady Carla Bruni.

With a new biography of Dati that appeared last week, it has emerged that the she had taken her newborn to see President Nicolas Sarkozy just days after giving birth in January and that he had agreed to be godfather, reports The Times. “Without making an appointment - she didn’t want to risk being refused - she burst into the Elysée, the baby in her arms,” writes Jacqueline Rémy in the tome. “Sarkozy could hardly refuse. It was a nice little coup,” Rémy added. However, the actions didn’t go down well with Carla Bruni-Sarkozy. The singer and former model, who married the president last year, resented the other woman’s habit of phoning him early each morning, Rémy said. Bruni was then furious to learn that her husband had been “ambushed” by Dati. “It was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” writes Rémy, a journalist. After that Sarkozy was deaf to her entreaties to be allowed to continue as justice minister. Tears and Mascara, as the book is called, accuses one of the most colourful figures in the court of “King Sarko” of ruthlessly manipulating businessmen and politicians to get to the top. ANI