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| Jeb Bush Apologizes to France for Workweek Remark in Debate | Jeb Bush Apologizes to France for Workweek Remark in Debate |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| LONDON — Accused of French-bashing, the Republican presidential hopeful Jeb Bush apologized this week for making fun of France’s work ethic, saying he was sorry for insulting America’s oldest ally. | |
| “I made the mistake of saying that the Congress operates on a French workweek,” Mr. Bush, with jovial flourish, said in his apology. “I really did a disservice to the French.” | |
| During the Republican presidential debate last week, Mr. Bush, former governor of Florida, sought to pour scorn on his opponent Marco Rubio’s attendance record in the Senate by comparing it with the perceived idleness of the French. “I mean, literally, the Senate, what is it, like a French workweek? You get like three days where you have to show up?” Mr. Bush asked. | During the Republican presidential debate last week, Mr. Bush, former governor of Florida, sought to pour scorn on his opponent Marco Rubio’s attendance record in the Senate by comparing it with the perceived idleness of the French. “I mean, literally, the Senate, what is it, like a French workweek? You get like three days where you have to show up?” Mr. Bush asked. |
| The assault, a seemingly well-rehearsed line that fell flat both at home and in France, stirred a backlash, with more than a few irate French people taking to social media to mock Mr. Bush’s lack of diplomacy. Moreover, some critics, including France’s ambassador to Washington, Gérard Araud, noted that Mr. Bush had muddled his facts. | The assault, a seemingly well-rehearsed line that fell flat both at home and in France, stirred a backlash, with more than a few irate French people taking to social media to mock Mr. Bush’s lack of diplomacy. Moreover, some critics, including France’s ambassador to Washington, Gérard Araud, noted that Mr. Bush had muddled his facts. |
| “A French work week of 3 days? No but a pregnancy paid leave of 16 weeks yes! And proud of it,” Mr. Araud wrote on Twitter, with Gallic defiance. | “A French work week of 3 days? No but a pregnancy paid leave of 16 weeks yes! And proud of it,” Mr. Araud wrote on Twitter, with Gallic defiance. |
| Indeed, despite having a 35-hour week, in practice the French are far from lazy. Full-time French workers last year put in an average of 38.9 hours a week, compared with the eurozone average of 39.6 hours a week, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. | Indeed, despite having a 35-hour week, in practice the French are far from lazy. Full-time French workers last year put in an average of 38.9 hours a week, compared with the eurozone average of 39.6 hours a week, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. |
| At the same time, French labor productivity is sufficiently robust that The Economist recently noted that “The French could take Friday off and still produce more than Britons do in a week.” | At the same time, French labor productivity is sufficiently robust that The Economist recently noted that “The French could take Friday off and still produce more than Britons do in a week.” |
| Mr. Bush, who has been seeking to revive his flagging candidacy and this week unveiled a new campaign slogan, “Jeb can fix it,” sought to mollify France, the first ally of the United States, which, historians note, provided essential military help during the American Revolutionary War. | Mr. Bush, who has been seeking to revive his flagging candidacy and this week unveiled a new campaign slogan, “Jeb can fix it,” sought to mollify France, the first ally of the United States, which, historians note, provided essential military help during the American Revolutionary War. |
| “I now know that the average French workweek is actually greater than the German workweek,” Mr. Bush said in his apology. “So, my God, I totally insulted an entire country — our first ally, that helped us become free as a nation. And I apologize.” | |
| Mr. Araud, for his part, appeared willing to accept the apology, called a mea culpa by Le Monde, the French newspaper. | Mr. Araud, for his part, appeared willing to accept the apology, called a mea culpa by Le Monde, the French newspaper. |
| “Everything is forgotten and forgiven,” Mr. Araud wrote on Twitter, adding, “Errare humanum.” |