Macron makes light of Barnier’s fall

luis miguel pascual

Paris (EFE).- French President Emmanuel Macron has already assumed that his Prime Minister, Michel Barnier, will be the victim of a censure motion this Wednesday and the French media assure this, from Saudi Arabia, where he Is visiting, already looking for a replacement.

While the demands for “responsibility” of ministers seem to be falling on wasteland, representatives of the left and, above all, the leader of the extreme right, Marine Le Pen, confirm what was declared the day before: Barnier will be the Second World War. The briefest after the war.

“Everything will be more difficult, more serious.”

The “chaos” and “instability” predicted by the executive, the financial “storm” that is bearing down on France, whose risk premium moves side by side with Greece, have not persuaded the opposition to change its position .

The Prime Minister himself will make a final call for help in prime time tonight on the two most watched television channels, private TF1 and public France 2, just when it appears his luck has run out.

Earlier, he had made a final intervention before the delegates, during a government control session, in which, casually, he assured that if his executive fell, “everything will be more difficult, more serious.”

Barnier reached the head of government after two months of political deadlock and another negotiation in the Elysee, until the President chose the profile of the experienced former Brexit negotiator as the only way to achieve reconciliation between the three political families, which are almost identical. Sit in parts. In the assembly that emerged from legislative elections last July.

Rejected from the first moment by the left, which claimed for its own position because it had more representatives than the other two blocs, the moderate conservatives had the cautious support of Le Pen, who, however, did not withstand the first test. Could do. Key Budget Lessons.

Macron in the center of the scene

But the chemistry between Barnier and Macron was never shaky, and according to the evening newspaper Le Monde, the president learned of the government’s projects while reading the press.

The Prime Minister also broke one of the principles of Macronism, which was to keep business taxes to a minimum as the real engine of the economy.

The President was abandoning the national scene in favor of the international scene and this was symbolized by Barnier informing him of his intention to expose himself to the censure motion as he was flying in the presidential plane on the way to Riyadh. Informed.

Now he has to return to the national scene and has very little room for manoeuvre, so he has to act immediately. But according to several media outlets, Macron has been considering his options for several days.

names of possible candidates

Of the names to be removed, the one being heard most loudly is that of current Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu, the only person left in the government since Macron joined the Elysee in 2017.

Having a loyal following among the president’s loyalists, he also added the advantage that he has a certain favorable view of Le Pen, which could help him achieve agreements that Barnier was unable to achieve.

Similar to the experienced centrist François Bayrou, who is one of the candidates for the post, which will conclude a long political career in which he has been minister and candidate of the Elysée several times.

He shared with Le Pen his accusation in the case of illegal financing of parties with European Parliament funds, of which he was acquitted due to lack of evidence and the fact of being in favor of a more representative electoral system.

On the other hand, the importance of the President appointing a Prime Minister from the Left is rapidly diminishing.

The socialist Bernard Cazeneuve, already in office for six months in the last phase of François Hollande’s presidency, had raised his voice only last September, but his party also enrolled in a coalition of communists, environmentalists and, above all, the left. Had not taken. The Melanconistas welcomed the idea with enthusiasm.

Another option is to bet on the current interior minister, Bruno Reteleau, a representative of the hardest and most conservative wing of the traditional right, who shares views with Le Pen on immigration and security issues.