The crushing defeat of Macron, and the possibility that France could become totally ungovernable if the RN rejects a coalition government, has generated waves of panic not only in France, but coming from its Western allies. “A National Rally victory in the run-off elections could have serious consequences not only for France, but also for Europe. The far-right party is not only very critical of the European Union and pursues a ‘France First’ policy, it also wants to move away from the strong partnership of France and Germany, the EU’s two biggest economies, which together have long been viewed as the motor of European integration,” wrote the Washington Post this morning. In further coverage this afternoon the Post observed there is also the worry that a victory for the extreme right could reduce the support for Ukraine and weaken the EU’s position against Russia. Le Pen is already putting into question Macron’s authority in foreign and military policy by noting that the President’s role would be more honorary, than institutional.
“On Sunday July 7, voters will go back to the polls to make their final decisions. At stake is not just the future make-up of the French parliament, but the stability of the EU’s second biggest economy and the political strength of NATO and the European Union,” lamented Politico this evening. In a June 20 preview of the elections, Politico reported: “If the far right gets a majority in the parliament, the French president would have to enter into a ‘cohabitation’ arrangement with the National Rally and appoint a far-right prime minister.”
Politico’s John Lichfield wrote on June 25, “The upcoming parliamentary election in France could be the most destructive since the war—not only for France, but also for the European Union, the Atlantic alliance and what remains of the post-war liberal world order. … France’s leadership position in the EU, its seat on the UN Security Council and its military reach as a global power make this almost as much of a ‘world election’ as Biden vs. Trump in November.”
The City of London’s weekly The Economist added its own grain of poison, that “If the RN-led alliance does manage to win a majority, or can scrape one together with new defectors, the country will be heading for a form of uncomfortable ‘cohabitation’ between the President and the government, in which they each hold a diametrically opposite view on almost everything, from fiscal policy to Europe, Ukraine and NATO. The Fifth Republic constitution, devised by Charles de Gaulle in 1958 precisely to bring about much-needed stability, could be sorely tested.” Finally, Spain’s La Vanguardia reports on the “anxiety and the loud silence from Brussels.” “Nobody has illusions concerning Le Pen’s positions which applauded the Brexit with enthusiasm eight years ago and encouraged the French to follow the same road, nor about the risk that ultranationalist ideas are weighing on the EU.”
