“Some had predicted a debate that tasted like herbal tea. (…) It has not happened “écrit The evening. Thursday, April 21, the day after the televised debate between Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen, the foreign press counts the points between the two candidates. “The two presidential finalists did not spare themselves. Not at all “adds the Belgian daily, which nevertheless judges that “it is the outgoing president, largely dominant on the merits, who has shown himself to be the most biting, regularly putting his opponent in difficulty, as in 2017”. “Even on his favorite subject [le pouvoir d’achat]the outgoing president hung her”highlighted The evening.
Pour The weatherthe oratorical jousting above all gave to see the image of “two France impossible to reconcile”. The candidates “have, on Wednesday evening, each camped on their positions, without ever succeeding (…) to make a difference with a shock phrase”asserts the Swiss newspaper. “For Emmanuel Macron, the trap of arrogance has only been partially avoided”écrit The weatherpointing out the attitude of the Head of State: “Arms crossed, annoyed, often striking an ironic pose at the risk of appearing contemptuous. »
“For Marine Le Pen, two successes in light of her failure in 2017: her calm in the face of Macron’s attacks and the always quantified and argued demonstrations of her opponent, and her way of presenting things, simple, and around a few figures- keys like the 600 billion euros of debt dug under the outgoing five-year term. »
The weather also tackles the format of this duel, with “Useless or almost useless journalists, stuck in their role of guardian of the clocks”.
“The head-to-head was a challenge for both candidates. Le Pen couldn’t shake a smirk and seemed to mock Macron when he spoke, and the latter couldn’t shake his habit of explaining his politics in detail, like a high school headmaster.”according to The Guardian. “Macron is an experienced and sharp debater, unlike Le Pen. While he strove to correct her “inconsistent” proposals with facts without appearing condescending, she relied on shocking phrases and emotional expressions like “astonishing,” “shocking,” “unacceptable,” dropping d ‘from topic to topic and wading through the details’says the British daily. The Guardian believes, however, that after “His disastrous performance in the 2017 presidential debate, Le Pen was much better prepared this time around. She had been advised to play the role of mother of the nation – advice she had not followed in 2017”.
“Marine Le Pen has generally held its rank”
An opinion shared by the BBC, which considers that “This time, Marine Le Pen was ready from the start and much more composed”. “Throughout the debate, it was Mr Macron who was on the offensive, appearing more like a challenger than an outgoing president, interrupting his rival on several occasions”, adds the British radio and television site. Further, the BBC also points “the strong performance of Mme The pen “.
Le Financial Times dwells on the theme of Russia, a real fault line between Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen. “As expected, Macron ruthlessly exploited one of Le Pen’s weak points: his previous ties to Putin and a loan granted to his party by a Russian bank in 2014”, writes the British economic and financial daily. On Wednesday evening, the candidate president indeed accused the far-right candidate of “depend on Russian power” et “by Mr. Putin” to get “took a loan from a Russian bank” – « faux » et ” dishonest “, retorted Marine Le Pen. the Financial Times also recognizes that the candidate delivered a performance “more assured” than in 2017. However, “Macron, a former economy minister and banker at Rothschild, clearly had the upper hand on issues such as unemployment, investment and start-ups”according to the British newspaper.
Le Washington Postfor its part, has rather the impression of a draw between the two finalists: “Ultimately, this nearly three-hour televised encounter may not significantly help or harm either candidate – meaning the race may remain close until the end. » M. Macron “had perhaps the biggest challenge ahead” insofar as its position as “outgoing president exposed him to more criticism than five years ago”. He must “defend his record” et “refute the critics” by Marine Le Pen, but without “give the impression of disregarding the issues that matter to voters”summarizes the American newspaper, before deciding: “He didn’t always succeed. »
“Interrupting each other and accusing each other of lying, they exchanged stings on everything from the environment to pension reform for almost three hours, without ever delivering a fatal blow. »holds the New York Times. “Although she suffered a few difficult moments during the debate, seeming lost on the subject of the colossal debt that France incurred to fight against Covid-19, [Marine Le Pen] has generally held its rank”still judges the New York daily.
Pour The countryif the outgoing president “dominated” the debate, he did not manage to put his competitor “offside as he did five years ago. Le Pen resisted. In addition, notes the Spanish newspaper, the tenant of the Elysée managed to put his opponent on the defensive: “As if what was at issue was not the president’s management over the past five years, but the candidate’s proposals” far right. A qualifier that the candidate president did not use. “The fact that Macron has avoided stoking fear of the far right is significant, and perhaps suggests that the argument of fear is no longer enough to get votes”also observe The country.
Conversely, the Italian daily The print sees Emmanuel Macron emerge clearly victorious from this duel: “The challenger, who was expected to be offensive on the president’s five-year term, remained uncertain and unconvincing, leaving much of the initiative to Macron, who looked at her sometimes with a smirk, sometimes with his arms crossed. »