Immigration, referendum, anti-Semitism… behind the scenes of the Macron dinner at the Élysée

2023-11-08 09:53:19

“He’s exhausted me, I’m exhausted,” says a tenor from the majority as he leaves the Élysée Palace shortly before midnight. For three hours, Emmanuel Macron received all the executive’s feathered hats this Tuesday evening for a working dinner that looked like a big round table discussion on the issues of the moment. On the plate: the traditional seafood platter shared in the Ambassadors’ lounge (where the Council of Ministers is usually held). And always the same guests, or almost: Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne, her predecessor Édouard Philippe, ministers Gérald Darmanin, Gabriel Attal and Olivier Véran, but also the boss of Renaissance Stéphane Séjourné, or even the heads of parliamentary groups François Patriat and Sylvain Maillard for Renaissance, the deputy Laurent Marcangeli (Horizons) and the senator Claude Malhuret (Agir). But one notable absentee all the same, François Bayrou – usually invited to this type of feast – who is currently being held in the Paris court in the case of the MoDem parliamentary assistants.