Majority of French public believe Strauss-Kahn was set up

Amidst intensifying calls for him to resign from his job as head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Dominique Strauss-Kahn is finding much support and sympathy from his fellow countrymen in France.

According to polls taken by RMC radio, BDM television and the website 20Minutes, 57 percent of people in France think Strauss-Kahn is a victim of a conspiracy. Among Frenchmen describing themselves as supporters of the Socialist Party, that figure soars to 70 percent.

Indeed, until the rape charges came to light, Strauss-Kahn was already highly regarded by much of the French populace and a favorite to win next year’s Presidential election under the Socialist banner.

Among Strauss-Kahn’s strongest supporters is the French philosopher and author Bernard-Henri Levy, who has known Strauss-Kahn for 25 years.

Nothing in the world can authorize the way this man has been thrown to the dogs, Levy wrote on his blog.

I do not know... how a chambermaid could enter on her own the room of one of the most watched people on the planet, against the normal practice in most big New York hotels, which provide for 'cleaning brigades' of at least two people.

Meanwhile, in New York, the attorney for the woman who was allegedly sexually assaulted by Strauss-Kahn scoffed at the conspiracy claims.

Jeffrey Shapiro said his client, a 32-year-old West African immigrant, had no idea who this man [Strauss-Kahn] was when she went into the room. The idea that someone would suggest she was involved in some form of conspiracy is ridiculous. This is someone who has been the victim of a violent act.

Shapiro added that the woman is suffering from extraordinary trauma and is in hiding.

It's not just my opinion that this woman is honest, Shapiro said.
The New York City Police Department reached the same conclusion. This is a woman with no agenda.

Strauss-Kahn is currently on suicide watch at the notorious Rikers Island prison in New York and is scheduled to be back in court on Friday.