Macron ‘demission’ is the ultimate political scape artist.
Failing President of France Emmanuel Macron has appointed a new Prime Minister for his minority government. It’s the fifth one in less than two years.
Lame duck Macron, distrusted by 80% of voters, has chosen his seventh Prime Minister, after Édouard Philippe (2017–2020), Jean Castex (2020–2022), Élisabeth Borne (2022–2024), Gabriel Attal (2024), Michel Barnier (2024), and now François Bayrou (2024–2025).
He has dodged persistent calls from the left and from the right for his resignation and/or for the dissolution of the deadlocked Parliament and calling of snap elections.
Instead, Macron named his conservative loyalist Sebastien Lecornu, frustrating expectations that he might lean towards the left.
Reuters reported:
“The choice of Lecornu, 39, indicates Macron’s determination to press on with a minority government that stands firmly behind his pro-business economic reform agenda, under which taxes on business and the wealthy have been cut and the retirement age raised.
However, Macron’s office said in a statement the president had asked Lecornu to hold talks with all political forces in parliament in view of finding compromises on the budget and other policies before naming his cabinet, in an unusual move in French politics.”
With Lecornu, Macron distances from the Socialist Party and ends up depending on Marine Le Pen’s rightwing National Rally (RN) for support in parliament.
“’Regardless of Sebastien Lecornu’s personal qualities, his nomination is a slap in the face of parliament’, said Philippe Brun, the Socialist lawmaker who has been in charge of budget negotiations, told Reuters. ‘Macron naming one of his followers has the whiff of an end-of-reign’.
Nationalist leader Marine Le Pen said on X the ‘president (was) firing the last shot of Macronism, holed up with his small circle of loyalists’.”
But Macron’s political survival looks unlikely.
Politico reported:
“Macron is now squarely in the line of public fire, ahead of threats of a national shutdown on Sept. 10 and major protests planned by trade unions on Sept. 18. The president’s popularity has dropped to an all-time low, with polls showing he is more unpopular today than at the peak of the Yellow Vest protests in 2018 and 2019, one of the gravest crises of his tenure.
Ever confident in his ability to wriggle, Houdini-like, out of the worst of tangles, Macron is still holding out for a deal with the moderate left, the centrists and the conservative Les Républicains party to form a minority government that can finally reach an agreement over the budget.
[…] ‘There is only one person responsible for the crisis, for the fiasco and instability, it’s the president of the Republic’, said Boris Vallaud, the Socialist Party’s parliamentary leader.”
And worse, France is considered to be ‘on the verge of mass civil unrest’.
Daily Mail reported:
“Politicians and the police are bracing for further chaos on Wednesday as a national day of disruption organized by furious anti-Macron protesters threatens to bring the divided nation to a total standstill.
Called ‘Bloquons Tout’ or ‘Let’s block everything’, the general strike led by unions is expected to bring together some 100,000 demonstrators who will walk out of the office, boycott businesses, stage sit-ins and blockade streets. On September 18, several unions are also calling for more demonstrations.
But French interior minister Bruno Retailleau last night warned that the day of unrest could spiral beyond the bounds of normal protest and transform into an ‘insurrectional climate’.
His warning was echoed by the head of the Paris Police Prefecture, Laurent Nuñez, who said he expected ‘sabotage’ attempts and major blockades of ring roads, oil depots, train stations and airports.”
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The post France’s Failing Macron Resists Calls to Resign or to Announce Snap Elections, Appoints Former Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu as His Fifth Prime Minister in 18 Months appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.