Just months after his May 2007 election, French president Nicolas Sarkozy faced growing criticism over his stalled reforms, flashy style, and stormy divorce. The last straw should have been his whirlwind remarriage, to an Italian heiress, ex-model, and singer who had past liaisons with Mick Jagger and Eric Clapton, among others, and nude photos all over the Internet. But the lady in question, Carla Bruni, is proving an unexpected asset. At the Élysée Palace, Maureen Orth encounters a pair of romantic predators who appear to have met their matches.

From the recent archive:

Carla Bruni, first lady of France, has a new album.

And from the thread in 2005 about her first album:

For some, the idea of listening to songs in another language is akin to watching a ball game in which the ball is invisible: meaningless and frustrating. For me, it works the other way round. Freed from following the words, I am ready to be lured by the sound of the singer's voice, alert to the interplay between voice and instruments.