"After Nasser had died of a heart attack in 1970, Sadat, his vice president, stepped in as acting president. He was supposed to hold the position for only sixty days but lasted longer than anyone expected. As he solidified his power, his every move seemed driven by the obsession to step out of Nasser’s gigantic shadow. Sadat was the focus of many jokes at the beginning of his time in power. "Sadat’s presidential limousine stops at a traffic light. Sadat asks the driver: And here, which way did Nasser turn? The driver answers: To the left, Mr. President. Sadat instructs his driver to signal left and then turn right." Others described Sadat as walking in Nasser’s footsteps, but with an eraser. Nasser had rid the country of the monarchy and the colonial powers. He nationalized the economy. Sadat would usher in what he called infitah, economic openness. He loosened the rules, liberalized the economy, and encouraged private and foreign investment. Where Nasser exhorted his countrymen to join together to build up the country, Sadat encouraged the migration of Egyptians to neighboring countries, especially the oil-rich Gulf, to send home remittances. Nasser was a reluctant warrior. Sadat took the Israelis by surprise and launched a war to snatch the Sinai back in October 1973. He didn’t win, but the initial success of the attack restored some national pride."