Excerpt:
France's president has dismissed the far-right's use of a recent killing spree as evidence of a need for tougher immigration laws, saying Monday the call makes no sense in the wake of the massacre by a "monster" who was French-born.
Nicolas Sarkozy, facing a tough re-election campaign this spring, has veered to the right to garner votes, talking a tough line on immigration and the place of Islamic customs in France.
But he criticized one of his opponents on Monday — National Front candidate Marine Le Pen — for suggesting lax immigration laws led to the shootings of 23-year-old Mohamed Merah.