Has Valerie Trierweiler already started trash talking Carla Bruni?
French first lady says she will not be a 'trophy wife'. Who could she be referring to?
LESS THAN a week after assuming the mantle of French first lady, Valerie Trierweiler, the companion of president-elect Francois Hollande, has been accused of directing a thinly veiled attack on her glamorous predecessor, former supermodel Carla Bruni.
Trierweiler has been the centre of attention since her partner's election triumph on Sunday and according to the French edition of Closer magazine, the Paris Match reporter has been explaining how she "understands" politics and therefore will find life at the Elysee Palace a little easier than Bruni, who married president Nicolas Sarkozy after a whirlwind romance in 2008.
Even more damning, it would seem, were comments she made in an interview with The Times. She shrugged off the obsession of the "Anglo-Saxon press" with the French first lady, and tried to paint herself as a typical Parisien.
"I have never worn dresses by grands couturiers," she declared.
Trierweiler declared she would not follow in the footsteps of Bruni, but said she would model herself on the feisty wife of Francois Mitterand, Danielle, who remained politically active despite her husband's role. She also professed admiration for Hillary Clinton.
She added pointedly: "I will not be une potiche." The word means 'trophy wife' in French and could be interpreted as an underhand swipe at Bruni, who was something of an enigma during Sarkozy's reign.
In the pages of Closer, Trierweiler said that she was a little bit daunted by what lay ahead but had a better idea of what to expect than Bruni. "She came from a world totally alien to that of politics. She did not necessarily know the political codes," she explained.
Meanwhile, the obsessed "Anglo-Saxon press" has already seized on Trierweiler's words, with the Metro branding them a "thinly veiled attack" on Bruni. ·
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She isn't "First Lady" : they aren't married.
Perhaps she's the one "qui porte la culotte" (wears the pants), the "guru" of her companion.
En France, at the end of his reign,King Louis XIV wasn't anymore the King, it was "La Maintenon", now it's at the beginning of the reign !
Bonjour from France,
She is not the first lady because they are not married (She has been married twice and François Hollande has never been married). i agree with Sheldon elle porte la culotte (she is in charge) for good natured François.... She has the bite, so it has been said, of a rottweiler.....
Ooh eck missus, handbags at 300 yards! Has Val noticed that Europe's in a bit of a state right now and that there are more important issues than who might or might not be une potiche?
Courageous Danielle Mitterrand, Ms T ain't. Talented musician Carla Bruni, Ms T ain't. Just good at making the cover of Paris Match. Her bank clerk-looking bed fellow should be happy
I am afraid your translation is incorrect. "Potiche does not mean "trophy wife". More like "useless decoration".
She's so much more attractive than Carla Bruni, even with all her wrinkles. I bet the narcissistic Bruni hates her and all the attention she is getting. She looks so frumpy next to Trierweiler.