…for his alleged sexual predation, because he’s not a conservative. He’s a socialist.
He’s also French, and the French have long been famous for ignoring (or perhaps even admiring?) the sexual peccadilloes of their randy politicians.
But the current allegations seem more serious. This isn’t about a high-class mistress—even a “well-documented affair with…a Hungarian economist and a junior colleague at the IMF,” which resulted in a 2008 apology by Strauss-Kahn, but no finding that he’d abused his power (although the woman in question indicated that he had). Nor is it about a family friend’s 20-something daughter who alleged in 2007 that he’d attacked her in 2002, although she’d never pressed charges because, “I didn’t want to be known to the end of my days as the girl who had a problem with the politician.”
If true, the type of attack that is now alleged is pretty unambiguously criminal, and involves a far more declasse victim: hotel maid. Perhaps Strauss-Kahn was showing he’s a man of the people? Whatever the truth or falsehood of the claim (which was made immediately after the offense), it does seem as though this guy has been spinning out of control for quite some time, and has only been emboldened (as perps often are) by the fact that he’s been getting away with it.
The present case is fraught with drama, not the least of which is its international nature. Strauss-Kahn almost made a successful getaway; he was pulled off an Air France flight at the last minute and taken into custody. As for the accuser, the only tidbit of news I’ve been able to glean about her is this, “The police have provided few details about the woman at the center of the case beyond saying she was 32 and an African immigrant.”
[NOTE: Reports are that, had this incident not occurred, Strauss-Kahn might have been elected France's next president. Interesting; I had no idea the socialists were so in the ascendance in France.]
Previously a lifelong Democrat, born in New York and living in New England, surrounded by liberals on all sides, I've found myself slowly but surely 
May 16th, 2011 at 2:10 pm
The behavior of this individual is despicable. Beyond that essential fact, this event has brought other lesser, but still disturbing, revelations to light.
The IMF, with significant funding from U.S. taxpayers, supports $3,000/night hotel rooms. This guy has a “deal” with Air France that allows him to obtain a First Class seat on any Air France flight with no notice. Just the latest example of international bureaucrats living like royalty at public expense.
Sometimes I really feel like it is time for the peasants to reach for their pitchforks.
May 16th, 2011 at 2:24 pm
If he is the “Great Seducer”, this doesn’t speak well France’s standards in that department ,does it?
Looks like he will be spending some time on Riker’s Island. He needs time to think about what it is to be a Mensch.
May 16th, 2011 at 3:18 pm
Aha! The French have limousine liberals TOO!
May 16th, 2011 at 3:20 pm
“Just the latest example of international bureaucrats living like royalty at public expense.”
Just the latest example of a ^socialist^ living like royalty. Just think — I once actually believed socialists were of the proletariat and dwelt among them as equals. Stoopid me.
May 16th, 2011 at 3:27 pm
They put a socialist in charge of money?
Good thinking.
And a dirtbag socialist at that? Or is that a superfluous qualifier?
Keep in Riker’s Island until trial (to avoid his doing a Polanski). Let this socialist meet and greet the proletariat. At length.
May 16th, 2011 at 4:05 pm
“Keep in Riker’s Island until trial (to avoid his doing a Polanski). Let this socialist meet and greet the proletariat. At length.”
Or maybe up close and more personal than he’d like.
May 16th, 2011 at 4:07 pm
Roger Simon has an update to his post on this at PJM. Apparently the IMF is saying that it didn’t pay for the hotel–it was a private trip. The Germans seem more concerned about what will happen to the Greek bailout. No one here is defending hiim or calling us prudes, at least not yet. We’ll have to give the artsy-crafties a few days to get their opinion pieces in the papers.
WRT the French presidency, I think the mood is more anti Sarkosy than pro DSK. Given Sarkosy’s sometimes rather strange inconsistant positions, it could be that people are just uneasy with him.
May 16th, 2011 at 4:27 pm
expat – I thought Le Pen’s daughter was doing well, though? What happened to her?
May 16th, 2011 at 5:09 pm
Some possible defenses:
He was confused. He had been listening to Queen and thought the words went “We will, we will rape you.”
He thought he was in Algeria.
She slipped him Viagra and plans on making a mint.
Take off the mask and it’s really Al Gore.
At least it wasn’t a homosexual attack.
This is the way they do it at the United Nations.
Who ya gonna believe? The important guy or her.
Temporary insanity. She looked too good. Plus, the soup nazi guy had just refused him soup. That would drive anybody crazy.
He couldn’t have done it because he knows his past is so bad it would be obvious he did do it.
Bush did it.
His understanding was the hotel offered her as a perk.
May 16th, 2011 at 6:07 pm
What gets me is that from what lawyers on some websites are saying, based on International agreements the U.S. has signed and their codification in U.S. Law, such high level UN and International organization personnel have diplomatic immunity, if they were “on duty. ” But, since the IMF released a statement that did not claim such diplomatic immunity for our boy, and said that he was paying the $3K a night tab for his hotel room himself, he was apparently not “on duty,” and therefore not immune to arrest and trial.
Of course, that is what they say today, but tomorrow could be a different story.
May 16th, 2011 at 6:47 pm
One message that is sent by the picture of this VIP in handcuffs, treated like a common criminal, is that the US is indeed “different”. So the accused may have a discreet but powerful ally in no less a person than our own, multi-lateral, post-national, model citizen of the world, Barak H. Obama. Everybody who matters wants this to go away asap.
May 16th, 2011 at 7:40 pm
armchair pessimist
One message that is sent by the picture of this VIP in handcuffs, treated like a common criminal, is that the US is indeed “different”….Everybody who matters wants this to go away asap.
Richard Fernandez/Wretchard the Cat at Belmont Club has mirrored your thoughts in
The Wrath of Khanat comment #25:
Ideally, America is the land of the Common Man under Rule of Law, not Rule of the Powerful, where law trumps position.
May 16th, 2011 at 7:58 pm
Gringo: that’s a fascinating quote from Fernandez.
May 16th, 2011 at 8:03 pm
kolnai,
I don’t really have a feeling about Le Pen. I read that she sounds more reasonable than her dad so that may allow her to pick up votes from the conservatives. There are just so many balls in the air now, who knows where they will land.
May 16th, 2011 at 8:41 pm
1. Per Neo and Wretchard, the presumption of innocence applies.
2. Fifty years ago the incident would have been hushed up. The immigrant chambermaid would have been fired if she persisted in complaining–if she dared to complain at all.
3. I’m very concerned about the nation’s current direction, but indeed we have come a long way.
Hopefully we have not left essential things behind.
May 16th, 2011 at 8:49 pm
In handcuffs and marched off to Riker’s Island. What a great consciousness-raising experience for this Marxist aristocrat.
May 17th, 2011 at 12:42 am
Riker’s Island – the absolute cure for “I love New York.”
May 17th, 2011 at 3:21 am
The report on Fox News says he tried to force this poor woman to fellate him, and he sodomized her as well. That when she knocked on the door and said “Housekeeping,” he answered the door buck-naked and grabbed her breasts.
He got violent with her, they say. Sounds like rape to me. Glad they nailed him, and I hope they send him to the hoosegow for a long stretch, in the General Population.
May 17th, 2011 at 9:19 am
Here is an article from the UK’s Daily Mail about all the beauties of that NYC vacation spot, Riker’s Island, and I particularly like the part where they print the menus for the meals that ol’ DSK will be enjoying over the next several days. (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1387871/IMF-chief-Dominique-Strauss-Kahn-inmate-notorious-Riker-Island-Jail.html)
Bon appetit!
May 17th, 2011 at 9:33 am
Gringo,
Hmmm, much to chew on there.
Thanks, AP
May 17th, 2011 at 10:08 am
Too bad DSK didn’t have a more powerful position–like the governor of a state who has control of law enforcement to help him out of a pesky rape charge.
May 17th, 2011 at 10:11 am
Trivially enough, throughout the freetranslation.com translation into English of a Frankfurter Faz.Net article, Strauss-Kahn’s name in literal translation yields the sobriquet “Bouquet-Boat.” It may catch on, though I think it could attract a few contemptuous hoots in the slammer.
May 17th, 2011 at 11:02 am
From that UK article, the first sentence is incorrect:
Rikers Island is a jail, for those awaiting trial and those sentenced to terms of less than one year. Prison is for longer sentences, as well as more serious and/or violent crimes. If this putz is convicted, he’ll wish he were in Rikers rather than one of upstate NY’s prisons, particularly those along the Canadian border which are quite frigid in winter.
If DSK is convicted of even a small portion of the charges against him, at 62, he’ll die in prison, which would not bother me at all. No matter how long his sentence, he’ll serve it in protective custody as some inmate will want to make their bones over his dead or maimed body. I can only hope he goes away for a long time, as he was an @sshole on a power trip who thought he could do with a hotel maid whatever the hell he wanted. He’s going to find out NYC ain’t France and we don’t take kindly to furriners rapin’ our women then trying to skedaddle on the next flight out.
May 17th, 2011 at 11:57 am
You know, I would have thought that the IMF would have been quick to jump to the defense of one of its “grandees,” and to assert that he had diplomatic immunity, but it appears that they have not yet made such an assertion.
I would also have thought that they would have jumped to his defense just on general principles, because they didn’t want a precedent set that one of their exclusive and rarefied circle, one of the really “important” people, could be handled so roughly and with so little deference and respect; as one French paper put it “like a common criminal”
However, I note that no less than four candidates for his job have already been proposed, and I am guessing that DSK was a real piece of work and had made a lot of enemies, so that pretty much everyone concerned it quite satisfied to see him brought low and kicked to the curb.
He could even have been–as sources on the Left in France have accused–”set up” but, if so, it was apparently absurdly easy to do so given his “way with the ladies.”
It says that he was a “former Communist.” Ever wonder what happened to all those Communists in Europe when the Wall fell and the U.S.S.R. disintegrated?
Well, apparently, a few still called themselves “Communists,” but the majority took on new disguises as “Socialists,” and many now suddenly became ardent “Environmentalists.” I wonder if DSK was one of those guys.
May 17th, 2011 at 2:22 pm
The Japanese have this idea that America pursues the Way of World Justice. This is seen alternatively as natural (for the strongest to have such a goal) and otherwise as annoying when it interferes with local affairs.