She wants to speak freely about the upcoming presidential election in France. Or she may have a tempting offer from the World Economic Forum or some other global body. Christine Lagarde will no doubt be able to come up with a plausible explanation for her decision to step down early as President of the European Central Bank. And yet there is also no escaping an awkward fact. She is also quitting a sinking ship – and at the worst possible time. 

If the central bank does have to step in with some form of rescue package for France, it would probably be best, to put it politely, if the person in charge was Dutch, Irish, Spanish or even German

If the central bank does have to step in with some form of rescue package for France, it........

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