Nicolas Sarkozy - President (non-U.S.) - Biography.com Nicolas Sarkozy Nicolas Paul Stéphane Sarközy de Nagy-Bocsa Zodiac Sign Nicolas Sarkozy served as France's 23rd president from 2007 to 2012. His term was marked by controversy, which included his marriage to Carla Bruni in 2008. IN THESE GROUPS Famous People Born in 1955 Synopsis Nicolas Sarkozy was born January 28, 1955 in Paris, France. He studied political science and served as mayor of Neuilly-sur-Seine for 20 years before entering national French politics. Sarkozy served as Interior Minister before being elected president in 2007. His term was marked by personal and political controversy, and he was defeated for reelection in 2012. Early Life and Career Nicolas Sarkozy was born on January 28, 1955 to Greek and Hungarian immigrants. He was the second of three children, and his father abandoned the family when he was a toddler. To support the family, his mother studied and became a lawyer.

He was raised Catholic in Neuilly-sur-Seine, a wealthy suburb of Paris, and he later said that while growing up, he felt inferior to his wealthier classmates. Rise to Power Sarkozy's political career started early. He was elected to his first political office—Municipal Councillor of Neuilly-sur-Seine—at the age of 22. Six years later, he was elected mayor. He served as mayor for nearly 20 years, before entering national politics. In addition to serving as mayor, Sarkozy served as budget minister from 1993 to 1995. When he snubbed President Jacques Chirac in 1995 by supporting Édouard Balladur for president, however, he lost the position. Although Chirac put his grudge aside in 2002, and appointed Sarkozy as French minister of the interior, Sarkozy's tenure in Chirac's administration was a bumpy one. The cabinet was reshuffled in 2004, and Sarkozy was appointed as finance minister.

He held this position briefly; when Sarkozy became leader of the Union for a Popular Movement later that year, he resigned his post, in accordance with an agreement with Chirac. In 2005, Sarkozy was reappointed as interior minister, without resigning as head of the UMP. As interior minister, Sarkozy attracted attention during the 2005 Paris riots by referring to troublemaking youth as "scum" and "rabble," and stating that the rundown suburbs should be washed out "with a power hose." Foreign Policy One of Sarkozy's first orders of business was to strengthen France's relationship with the United States, which had been chilly since Jacques Chirac refused to send troops to Iraq in 2003. Sarkozy promised—and delivered—troops to aid in the war, and France rejoined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's military structure in 2009. Almost immediately after entering office, Sarkozy began to negotiate with Colombian President Álvaro Uribe and the guerilla group Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia, in an attempt to secure the release of hostages, particularly Ingrid Betancourt, a dual French/Colombian citizen.

France opposed a military effort and preferred diplomatic negotiations, but in 2008, Colombian forces, with American guidance, successfully rescued 15 hostages without informing France. In July of 2007, Sarkozy announced that France, along with other European countries, had obtained the release of the six Bulgarian nurses who had been held in Libya for more than eight years. In order to secure their extradition, he signed security, health-care and immigration pacts with Muammar Gaddafi. He also signed an arms trade agreement, sparking controversy and a criticism that he had bartered arms for hostages with a "rogue state." Sarkozy, as well as Bulgarian officials, deny that the two deals were related. Sarkozy's environmental policies were more popular. During the 33rd G8 summit, he announced that France would attempt to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 50 percent by 2050, in an effort to reduce global warming. In 2010, France was ranked No. 1 on Yale University's Environmental Performance Index. Domestic Policy Historically, the president of the French Republic has focused on foreign relations; and the nation's prime minister has focused on domestic policy.

Sarkozy, however, took a more active role in domestic issues. As part of his economic stimulus package, he reduced the inheritance tax and enacted the TEPA Law, which offered tax cuts to wealthy households. He also took a tough stance on immigration, and forced mass deportations of the Gypsy (Roma) population. Additionally, under Sarzoky's leadership, a new program was enacted to use fingerprints to profile passengers at airports, and to integrate that database into both the criminal justice and national security databases. In 2007, Sarkozy also broke with the Bastille Day tradition of offering amnesty for traffic tickets and releasing some prisoners from jail—a French custom that was started by Napoleon in 1802, to commemorate the storming of the Bastille during the French Revolution. In protest, public sector workers went on strike. University protests erupted at the same time, in protest of a polemical law that Sarkozy had established. Re-Election Campaign and Defeat Over the five years of his presidency, Sarkozy's approval ratings fell from the highest in the country's history to the lowest, at 26 percent, and he was considered a long-shot for re-election.

He maintained that he would make a comeback and prevail, but in May of 2012, he was defeated in his bid for re-election by Socialist François Hollande. In his concession speech, Sarkozy said he assumed "full responsibility for this defeat," and suggested retiring from the political spotlight. Personal Life As with his political life, Sarkozy has courted controversy in his personal life. Sarkozy has been married to three women. He and his second wife, Cécilia Ciganer-Albéniz, divorced in October of 2007, shortly after he took office, and he met his third wife, model and singer Carla Bruni, less than a month after he and Ciganer-Albéniz separated. He and Bruni were married three months later. Sarkozy has four children; he has two children with his first wife, Marie-Dominique Culioli; one with Cécilia Ciganer-Albéniz; and one with Carla Bruni. Fact Check We strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us !

Citation Information Why John Kerry and the French president are calling ISIS "Daesh" - Vox Why John Kerry and the French president are calling ISIS "Daesh" share In his statement describing the Paris attacks as an "act of war" against France, President François Hollande said the war "was waged by a terrorist army, a jihadist army, by Daesh, against France." Secretary of State John Kerry also referred to Daesh in Vienna at an international conference on Syria. This is not a term most Americans are familiar with, but it's part of a larger dispute — largely between Western governments and Western media outlets — over how to refer to the group we call ISIS , one that pits the strategic agenda of governments against the goals of clear communication. A short guide to ISIS's many names There are, broadly speaking, four things that people call the group: ISIS, ISIL, the Islamic State, and Daesh . This is largely ISIS's fault; a big reason the group has so many names is that it keeps changing it. When the group's predecessor organization was created in 1999, it was called Jamaat al-Tawhid wal-Jihad, which means Unity and Jihad .

In 2004, the group's founder, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, pledged an oath to al-Qaeda, changing his group's name to Tanzim Qaidat al-Jihad fi Bilad al-Rafidayn — or, as it was called in English, al-Qaeda in Iraq . After AQI took over huge swaths of Iraq in 2006, the organization declared itself to be a state in northern Iraq and started calling itself the Islamic State in Iraq. When it took a bunch of territory in Syria in 2013, it began calling itself the Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham — ISIS. Al-Sham is a difficult-to-translate Arabic term referring to a specific geographic area along the eastern Mediterranean that includes Syria. Some English speakers translate al-Sham as "the Levant," which refers to a broader region in the Middle East that generally overlaps with al-Sham. This is how you get ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant), as the White House and others call it. Others still approximate al-Sham to Syria, which yields the same ISIS acronym.

The full name in Arabic is transliterated like this: al-Dawla al-Islamiya fi Iraq wa al-Sham — which produces the acronym DAIISH (usually spelled Daesh in English). That sounds an awful lot like the Arabic word "dahes," which the Guardian translates as "one who sows discord." ISIS kind of hates this insulting connotation, and so banned the name "Daesh" in its territory. But it doesn't use ISIS either. Crucially, the group now claims to be a caliphate — that is, the successor of the original seventh-century founding Islamic nation. As such, it dropped the geographic identifiers from its name, and simply calls itself "the Islamic State." The case for calling it "Daesh" (ISIS) A French ISIS volunteer. A lot of news organizations use "Islamic State" or "the Islamic State" for a simple reason: It's what the group calls itself, and accuracy is important. But politicians and governments generally don't. They've got some pretty good reasons: Calling it the Islamic State helps ISIS sell its message, and helps insult Muslims to boot. The name "Islamic State," as opposed to ISIS or Daesh, is at its heart a propaganda tool.

By claiming to be the caliphate, ISIS is implying that it's the only state true Muslims should obey: Around the world, they should pledge loyalty to the one and only Islamic State. This message is part of how ISIS recruits and thus keeps fighting. Hence why British and French authorities are moving to the more derogatory Daesh, which doesn't imply that the group is either a real government or an authentic representation of Islamic thought. "Islamic State, ISIL, and ISIS [give] legitimacy to a terrorist organization that is not Islamic nor has it been recognised as a state," 120 British MPs wrote in a letter to Lord Tony Hall , the director general of the BBC. It seems unlikely that anyone joins ISIS because of the words David Cameron or Barack Obama, let alone a TV news anchor, uses to describe the group. But there's also an issue of insulting and stigmatizing Muslims. Using the name Daesh sends the message to French and British audiences that they should not equate ISIS with Islam. Given the large Muslim minorities in both countries, and their struggles with assimilation and intolerance, this is an important message.

A group of British imams wrote a letter to Cameron last year asking him to call it the "un-Islamic state." Cameron, during a BBC interview, called the name Islamic State "a perversion of the religion of Islam, and many Muslims listening to this programme will recoil every time they hear the words Islamic State." The case for calling the group ISIS A Kurdish fighter poses with a destroyed ISIS truck. (Ahmad al-Rubaye/AFP/Getty Images) While it's Cameron's job to combat ISIS propaganda in the UK, it's the BBC's job to accurately inform its audience about ISIS as an organization: what it believes, how strong it is, what it wants, and, yes, what it calls itself. For non-Arabic-speaking audiences, Daesh is merely another unfamiliar foreign word. But "the Islamic State" helps convey the group's core ideology: It sees itself as an Islamic government, not merely another terrorist organization. Understanding this is critically important to understanding how the group works. It's also important for understanding how it's being fought. Because ISIS is ideologically committed to governing and defending its territory, it needs to fight a conventional war rather than an insurgency.

This point is not well understood; most people think of ISIS as something like the Viet Cong or the Iraqi insurgents of the mid-2000s. At the same time, "ISIS" is perhaps more accurate than "Islamic State" because, despite the group's efforts to sow violence in other countries such as Yemen and Libya, its claim to statehood only really stands in Syria and Iraq. As for the issue of whether the last word in ISIS's name should be translated as "al-Sham" or "the Levant" or "Syria," there's not really a single answer. But one reason many organizations have stuck with ISIS over ISIL is that the former is by far the term readers are most familiar with, as this Google trends search emphasizes (ISIS is the one in blue): Watch: Syria's civil war, explained Was this article helpful? Francois Hollande Biography (President of France) Birthplace: Rouen, France Best known as: The President of France, 2012 - Francois Hollande is the longtime Socialist party leader who was elected President of France in 2012. He succeeded Nicolas Sarkozy and will serve a 5-year term through 2017.

Hollande has been involved in Socialist politics in France since joining the party in 1979. He graduated from the elite Ecole Nationale d'Administration (1980) and also attended the Paris Institute of Political Studies (commonly known as Sciences Po). Hollande became a member of parliament in the French national assembly in 1988, representing the Correze region of southern France. In 1997 he succeeded Lionel Jospin in the party's First Secretary. At the time, many saw Hollande as a bland functionary and compromiser; indeed, his own nickname for himself is "Mr. Normal." He ran for the Socialist party nomination for president in 2007, but in an odd twist lost to Segolene Royal, his longtime companion and mother to his four children. She lost the general election to Sarkozy, and shortly after that his affair with Paris Match writer Valerie Trierweiler became public, and he split with Royal. Hollande stepped down as the Socialist party's executive secretary in 2008, and his career seemed on the wane.

However, in 2011 the New York hotel scandal of Socialist leader Dominique Strauss-Kahn turned the slightly duller Hollande into a more attractive presidential candidate. He ran on a platform of increased taxes on the rich (with a top rate of 75% on earnings over one million euros) and a promise to add thousands of new teachers. When he beat Sarkozy in the final presidential elections on 6 May 2012, the CBC called him "the amiable political tortoise who overtook the hyperactive hare." Early in 2014, Hollande's administration was shaken when the French magazine Closer claimed that he was having an affair with actress Julie Gayet. Hollande deplored the invasion of his privacy but did not deny the report. Trierweiler was hospitalized briefly after the report broke, and a week later Hollande told the French news agency AFP that he and Trierweiler had split up.

Extra credit: In addition to his other roles, Francois Hollande was mayor of the city of Tulle from 2001-08… He represented Correze from 1988-93, and again from 1997 until his election in 2012… Francois Hollande has four children with Segolene Royal: Thomas (born 1984), Clémence (b. 1985), Julien (b. 1987) and Flora (b. 1992). Copyright © 1998-2017 by Who2?, LLC. All rights reserved. 2012: A Year in Photos | The White House Home • 2012: A Year in Photos 2012: A Year in Photos 2012: A Year in Photos Scroll Down 2012 in Photos The White House photo team has a front row view for all the events both big and small at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., and on the road with the President, the Vice President and the First Family.

Each January, Pete Souza, Chief Official White House Photographer and Director of the White House Photography Office, selects his favorite images from the past twelve months. Featuring exclusive perspectives of everything from Presidential trips and events to private moments between President Obama and his family, his staff and American citizens, this collection offers a unique view of 2012. Share on Twitter January 1, 2012 "A nice way to celebrate the New Year for the President was to jump in the ocean in his native state of Hawaii. He was on his annual Christmas vacation with family and friends, and went swimming at Pyramid Rock Beach in Kaneohe Bay." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) January 24, 2012 "One of the most memorable moments of the year was when the President hugged Rep. Gabrielle Giffords as he walked onto the floor of the House Chamber at the U.S.

Capitol to deliver his annual State of the Union address." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) January 25, 2012 "Chuck Kennedy made this amusing photograph of First Lady Michelle Obama participating in a potato sack race with Jimmy Fallon in the East Room of the White House during a “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” taping for the second anniversary of the "Let’s Move!" initiative." (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy) January 30, 2012 "This is one of those rare instances where my presence indirectly became a part of this reaction from those pictured in the photograph. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had just accidentally dropped all of her briefing papers onto the Oval Office rug and she, the President and Vice President all reacted in a way that indicated that surely I wouldn't get a photo of that to embarrass her." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) February 1, 2012 "Lawrence Jackson captured this cute photograph of the President holding Arianna Holmes, 3, before taking a departure photo with members of her family in the Oval Office." (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson) February 7, 2012 "Kids will be kids.

After the President had welcomed Lauren Fleming, the March of Dimes national ambassador, and her family in the Oval Office, her brother, Corbin Fleming, started to play with the President's telephone. Fortunately, he wasn't able to get through to a head of state." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) February 13, 2012 "From early spring to late fall, the light in the Oval Office is fairly consistent with the sun high in the horizon during the day. But during the winter months, the sun is lower on the horizon and splashes through the back window in the early morning and late afternoon. Here, in the midst of the morning light, the President talks on the phone with British Prime Minister David Cameron." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) February 16, 2012 "Chuck Kennedy made this photograph of women reacting in the Red Room after being surprised by First Lady Michelle Obama during their White House tour." (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy) LEARN MORE February 21, 2012 "Egged on by B.B.

King, at right, the President joins in singing 'Sweet Home Chicago' during the 'In Performance at the White House: Red, White and Blues' concert in the East Room. Participants include, from left: Troy 'Trombone Shorty' Andrews, Jeff Beck, Derek Trucks, B.B. King, and Gary Clark, Jr." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) LEARN MORE February 29, 2012 "Sonya Hebert made this amusing photograph of Bo, the Obama family dog, as he was being videotaped for the Easter Egg Roll, in the East Colonnade of the White House." (Official White House Photo by Sonya N. Hebert) LEARN MORE March 17, 2012 "David Lienemann made this action photograph of Vice President Joe Biden and his security detail literally running during the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Pittsburgh, Pa." (Official White House Photo by David Lienemann) March 30, 2012 "We had just arrived aboard the Marine One helicopter on the South Lawn and the President was walking into the White House.

I had seen this scene several times but had never been able to quite capture it the way I wanted. Here, finally, arriving at night, I was able to frame him walking into the light of the Diplomatic Reception Room, with the added bonus of his shadow being cast from the television lights off to the left." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) April 18, 2012 "We were doing an event at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Mich. Before speaking, the President was looking at some of the automobiles and exhibits adjacent to the event, and before I knew what was happening he walked onto the famed Rosa Parks bus. He sat in one of the seats, looking out the window for only a few seconds." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) April 24, 2012 "We were backstage at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill for the President's appearance on 'Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.' The President let out a big laugh as he was being briefed by the producers and Mr.

Fallon on the 'Slow Jam the News' segment." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) April 24, 2012 "The President wipes off his trousers after being splattered by frozen yogurt while shaking hands along a ropeline in Boulder, Colo. University of Colorado student Kolbi Zerbest had placed her cup of yogurt on the ground while trying to shake hands with the President, and someone else inadvertently kicked the cup." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) May 1, 2012 "In Afghanistan, there was virtually no light inside the helicopter as we flew from Kabul back to Bagram Air Field after the President had met with Afghan President Hamid Karzai. (For the photo buffs, this photograph was taken at ISO 6400, 1/5 second at f/1.4.) Flanking the President are General John Allen, Commanding General of U.S. Forces in Afghanistan, and U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Ryan Crocker.

Denis McDonough, Deputy National Security Advisor, is at left." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) May 1, 2012 "A soldier hugs the President as he greeted U.S. troops at Bagram Air Field in Afghanistan." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) LEARN MORE May 1, 2012 "For the President, this was one of the most poignant moments of his first term. He was visiting wounded warriors in the intensive care unit at Bagram Air Field in Afghanistan. He had just presented a Purple Heart to Sgt. Chase Haag, who had been injured by an IED just hours before. Sgt. Haag was covered with a blanket and it was difficult to see how badly he was injured. He was also seemingly unconscious, or perhaps just asleep. The President whispered in his ear so not to wake him. Just then, there was a rustling under the blanket and Sgt. Haag, eyes still closed, reached his hand out to shake hands with the President.

'I'll never forget that moment,' someone else in the room later told me." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) May 11, 2012 "Lawrence Jackson made this great photograph of the First Lady touching the Hokie Stone before walking onto the field at Lane Stadium to give the Virginia Tech commencement address in Blacksburg, Va." (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson) May 11, 2012 "After some early morning basketball in Los Angeles, the President talks with the players who included actors Don Cheadle, Tobey Maguire, and George Clooney, along with two of Clooney's long-time friends. Stacy Keibler is also at right." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) May 19, 2012 "At Camp David for the G8 Summit, European leaders took a break to watch the overtime shootout of the Chelsea vs. Bayern Munich Champions League final.

Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom, the President, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, French President François Hollande react during the winning goal." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) May 19, 2012 "One of the great things about the G8 Summit being at Camp David was the relaxed and casual atmosphere. When the President decided to have an unscheduled meeting with just the Eurozone leaders, he asked them to step outside on the Laurel Cabin patio where the leaders and their staff all pulled up chairs for the impromptu meeting." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) May 19, 2012 "Following the conclusion of the G8 Summit, the President plays a game of pool in the Holly Cabin at Camp David." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) May 20, 2012 "'How cool is this,' the President said after he threw a football at Soldier Field following the NATO working dinner in Chicago.

I think he was especially excited to be on the home turf of his beloved Chicago Bears." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) May 25, 2012 "Luz Graham-Urquilla, 4, watches as the President signs her drawing at the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) May 25, 2012 "The President was welcoming service members and their families to a screening of 'Men in Black 3' in the White House Family Theater.

The movie was being presented in 3D, so the President jokingly asked them to try on their 3D glasses while he was speaking to them." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) LEARN MORE June 13, 2012 "There was still a little light left in the evening sky as the President and First Lady waved goodbye to President Shimon Peres of Israel following a dinner in his honor at the White House." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) LEARN MORE June 14, 2012 "We made an OTR (off-the-record, surprise stop) at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Cleveland after a campaign event, and the President sat and talked to a young woman before shooting hoops with another group of kids." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) June 15, 2012 "We had just arrived at the helicopter landing zone in Chicago and instead of walking right to the motorcade, the President and First Lady walked past their vehicle to the edge of Lake Michigan to view the skyline of their home town." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) June 16, 2012 "The First Lady reacts as she

 watches Laura Jarrett and Tony Balkissoon take their vows during their wedding at Valerie Jarrett's home in Chicago." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) June 18, 2012 "We were in Mexico for G20 Summit.

While the President was waiting for Russian President Vladimir Putin to arrive for their bilateral meeting, he stepped outside to talk with Chief of Staff Jack Lew." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) June 28, 2012 "This was the day that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on the Affordable Health Care Act. Before the President came downstairs from the residence that morning, the split-screen television in the Outer Oval Office was flashing bulletins that the Court had overturned the act. Kathy Ruemmler, the White House counsel, came rushing in and told me and the President's secretary just the opposite. Kathy then departed and a few minutes later the President arrived at the Oval and saw the same inaccurate information on the television. Kathy soon reappeared to tell the President that the Court had indeed upheld the Act, and that the TV reports had it wrong. He then gave her a big hug, as Chief of Staff Jack Lew watched at left." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) LEARN MORE June 28, 2012 "The President prays with a wounded service member and his family during a visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.

The President likes to make a few trips a year to Walter Reed to visit wounded warriors and their families." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) June 28, 2012 "Sonya Hebert made this photograph of the First Lady joining African Methodist Episcopal Church bishops for a group prayer at the Gaylord Opryland Resort in Nashville, Tenn." (Official White House Photo by Sonya N. Hebert) June 29, 2012 "The President views fire damage with firefighters and elected officials in Colorado Springs, Colo., after the devastating wildfires swept through the region the week before." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) LEARN MORE July 5, 2012 "'Anyone want to try a piece of my strawberry pie,' the President asked those at adjacent tables during a stop for lunch at Kozy Corners restaurant in Oak Harbor, Ohio. A young boy said yes and came over for a big bite of pie." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) July 14, 2012 "The President delivers remarks in the pouring rain at a campaign event in Glen Allen, Va.

He was supposed to do a series of press interviews inside before his speech, but since people had been waiting for hours in the rain he did his remarks as soon as he arrived at the site so people could go home to dry off ." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) July 16, 2012 "The President and First Lady were attending the game between the U.S. Men's Olympic basketball team and Brazil in Washington, D.C. During the first half, the jumbotron flashed couples on their 'Kiss Cam', where they are then induced by the crowd to kiss each other. But neither the President or First Lady saw themselves when they were flashed on the 'Kiss Cam', and some in the audience booed when they didn't kiss. At halftime, as we walked to the locker room to visit the U.S. team, daughters Malia and Sasha were asking their parents why they hadn't kissed during their 'Kiss Cam' moment. Both the President and First Lady said they hadn't even realized what had happened and didn't know why people were booing.

So in the second half, when they appeared again on the 'Kiss Cam', the President leaned over to kiss the First Lady amongst audience cheers as Malia and the Vice President watched overhead on the jumbotron." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) July 22, 2012 "The President hugs Stephanie Davies, who helped her friend, Allie Young, left, stay alive after she was shot during the movie theater shootings in Aurora, Colo. The President visited patients and family members affected by the shootings at the University of Colorado Hospital. The President later told their story in a news conference." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) LEARN MORE July 26, 2012 "A view from behind the President's chair during a Cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) July 27, 2012 "Sonya Hebert captured this amusing moment as U.S. Olympic wrestler Elena Pirozhkova literally picked up the First Lady during a greet with Team USA Olympic athletes competing in the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London." (Official White House Photo by Sonya N.

Hebert) LEARN MORE August 8, 2012 "Overcome with emotion, eight-year old Make-A-Wish child Janiya Penny reacts just after meeting the President as he welcomes her family to the Oval Office." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) August 14, 2012 "How about a White House beer? The President was greeting patrons at Coffee Connection in Knoxville, Iowa, when this customer asked him about the White House beer. The President said he thought he might have some on his campaign bus and asked an aide to check. A few minutes later, the President delivered a bottle and the customer reacted in celebration." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) LEARN MORE August 14, 2012 "The President waves from his campaign bus to people lining the motorcade route in Iowa." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) August 15, 2012 "The President hugs the First Lady after she had introduced him at a campaign event in Davenport, Iowa.

The campaign tweeted a similar photo from the campaign photographer on election night and a lot of people thought it was taken on election day." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) August 28, 2012 "The shadows of supporters are seen cheering as the President makes his way to the stage at an outdoor campaign rally at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) September 1, 2012 "The overview of a campaign rally in Urbandale, Iowa.

This view was from a scissors lift just above the press stand." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) September 2, 2012 "David Lienemann made this unusual photo as staff held flashlights so the Vice President could see as he signed autographs backstage at West York Area High School in York, Pa." (Official White House Photo by David Lienemann) September 5, 2012 "Backstage at the Democratic National Convention, the President watches as former President Bill Clinton delivers his nomination speech, before surprising the crowd with an onstage appearance together after the speech." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) September 6, 2012 "While the President was waiting anxiously backstage before his speech at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., daughters Malia and Sasha came in to wish him well." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) September 6, 2012 "Chuck Kennedy made this overhead shot as the Obama and Biden families joined together onstage following the President's speech at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte." (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy) September 7, 2012 "The President and Vice President share a laugh before a campaign

 rally together in Portsmouth, N.H." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) September 8, 2012 "I love the headlight on the vehicle helping to light this frame taken by David Lienemann as the Vice President greets people gathered outside the Obama For America field office in Chillicothe, Ohio." (Official White House Photo by David Lienemann) September 11, 2012 "Denis McDonough, Deputy National Security Advisor, left, updates the President and Vice President on the situation in the Middle East and North Africa.

National Security Advisor Tom Donilon and Chief of Staff Jack Lew are at right." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) September 14, 2012 "The President grasps the hand of the Secretary of State after his remarks during the ceremony at Joint Base Andrews, marking the return to the United States of the remains of J. Christopher Stevens, U.S. Ambassador to Libya; Sean Smith, Information Management Officer; and Security Personnel Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods, who were killed in the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) September 28, 2012 "A candid portrait of the President during a meeting, juxtaposed with the paintings of Abraham Lincoln and George Washington, busts of Martin Luther King, Jr., and Abraham Lincoln, and the Emancipation Proclamation. It's a difficult angle to get because I had to sit in front of the closed Oval Office door and hope that no one would open the door and knock me over." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) October 2, 2012 "The President talks with Ron Klain during debate preparations in Henderson, Nev. Sen.

John Kerry, D-Mass., background, played the role of Gov. Mitt Romney during the prep sessions." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) October 12, 2012 "The President had invited former White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs to have lunch, and they apparently started talking about Gibb's Chevy Volt. Gibbs knew the President had visited one of their factories and was hoping to drive a Volt one day. Gibbs told the President that his car was on the South Drive. So the President jumped in and made three loops around the drive, joking later that the Secret Service ordered that the White House gates not be opened under any circumstances." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) October 18, 2012 "The President ties his white tie before the Alfred E. Smith dinner in New York.

Although the dinner is an annual event, every four years, the two presidential nominees attend the dinner only a few weeks before the election." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) October 23, 2012 "The afternoon sun beams down on the President during a campaign rally in Delray, Fla." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) October 25, 2012 "At a late night rally in Cleveland, supporters react as the President delivered his remarks." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) October 26, 2012 "The President pretends to be caught in Spider-Man's web as he greets Nicholas Tamarin, 3, just outside the Oval Office. Spider-Man had been trick-or-treating for an early Halloween with his father, White House aide Nate Tamarin in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.

I can never commit to calling any picture my favorite, but the President told me that this was HIS favorite picture of the year when he saw it hanging in the West Wing a couple of weeks later." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) October 29, 2012 "In the White House Situation Room, the President receives an update to the ongoing response to Hurricane Sandy during a teleconference with key officials." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Question: Name the French president who began his term in 2012?
Answer: Francois Hollande