In 2017, Macron wants to change France. He reforms and lives through crises Internationally, his role continues to grow, but in the country he only moderately inspires. Who is the presidential candidate?
The President works in a hoodie, the President sprawls on a sofa in his unbuttoned shirt, the President kisses a child on the cheek while bathing in the crowd.
The pictures of Emmanuel Macron that have recently been circulating show that the French head of state is trying to shake off his image as the detached man of the elite in the final spurt of the election campaign.
“President of the rich” – this label has been attached to Macron since the former investment banker won the election for the Élysée Palace as an outsider five years ago. Ironically, many see him, who promised a new political beginning, as an integral part, even as an icon, of the political elite. Internationally, however, he is regarded as a new impetus in Europe and in the Ukraine war as one of the most important mediators on the continent.
Resistance on the inside, recognition on the outside
Macron became known as a young president full of energy, wanted to turn NATO and the European Union upside down, let a wave of reforms roll over France and put an end to the encrusted system of French politics in a hurry. The ambitious statesman did not succeed in everything. Again and again the Liberal encountered fierce resistance. For weeks, the French protested against his ultimately failed pension plans. The “yellow vests” soon demonstrated against his political style itself. Macron also felt the anger of some physically, had to be slapped and thrown an egg.
The 44-year-old middle politician from Amiens in northern France is polarizing. Sometimes he inspires as a charismatic speaker, sometimes he toasts with his clear words: His statement that he wanted to annoy unvaccinated people in the Corona crisis to the end will not be forgotten.
But Macron sees a learning curve in himself. There is no doubt that he was sometimes harsh and impetuous. At the side of the French, he then learned to love them better, he says – with more forbearance and benevolence. Macron seeks dialogue and is fallible. During the election campaign, he openly talked to those who told him to his face that they regretted having voted for him.
There is no big change
Macron is someone who wants to get involved in a number of issues, but perhaps dances at too many weddings to produce really visible results in the end. There were numerous moments when he passionately preached change, but the big change never happened. “You don’t transform the country in five years,” Macron said recently and admitted in another interview that the time in the Élysée had passed too quickly. Macron may have taken bold steps as president, curbed unemployment and advanced France economically, but he left no clear political legacy.
Looking ahead to the election, Macron appeared to be firmly in the saddle for a long time, despite the number of crises that plagued him. The former elite student didn’t bother with the election campaign and even let his right-wing adversary Marine Le Pen get dangerously close to him. As in 2017, he hopes to be able to count on broad support from various camps that want to prevent President Le Pen at all costs.
But while Macron was still a blank slate five years ago, everyone now knows what a new term in office would bring. In the left camp above all: disappointment and frustration. Because the ex-socialist now represents more liberal-conservative issues. The fact that he promised a complete “reinvention” of his politics in the final sprint of the election campaign and waved the climate flag should probably move few. Even if the majority votes for Macron in the end, it will be decisive whether he can then also inspire and reconcile or whether a new wave of protests is already written in his house.
Source: Stern
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