FactualMore than two months after the presidential election, the “air pocket” of the head of state continues to last. Undecided and wait-and-see, he surprised even those close to him and he was now forced to compromise by his relative majority in the National Assembly.
It is broad daylight outside but the curtains have been drawn, forcing the ushers of the Elysée to light the chandeliers hanging from the ceiling of the Napoleon III salon. Not very green, while Emmanuel Macron receives a dozen climate experts on this afternoon of May 7. The head of state was re-elected ten days ago, after a short campaign and a five-year term where each year seemed to double. He is tired. “We are all tired”he sighs in front of his relatives, in an amalgam between his personal state of mind and that of the country.
” I’m listening to you “, launches Emmanuel Macron to his interlocutors. The President of the Republic does not really want to talk; everything has already been said in his speech in Marseilles, three weeks earlier, in which he promised to make France a “great ecological nation”. He takes notes. Around the table, some are wondering if their contribution will feed future elements of presidential language, or if they are part of serious work. Their host, in any case, does not fail to share photos of their meeting with the eight million subscribers of his Twitter account.
A week later, the guests will receive a report of the meeting, with the unpleasant impression that the plot was written before they set foot in the Palace. Since then, nothing. The father of the slogan “Make Our Planet Great Again” is expected at the turn, after having disappointed a lot. “I asked him how he intended to catch up on renewable energy; no reaction, he was not there to exchangeregrets the climatologist Jean Jouzel. At some point, I would like the political decision-makers to keep their promises. »
This cry from the heart, Emmanuel Macron had nevertheless made it the engine of his commitment. “For me, action and achievement alone count. Without that, this political life is unworthy”he wrote in 2016 in his book Revolution (XO). The “yellow vests” crisis, the Covid-19 epidemic, then the war in Ukraine blunted this youthful bravado. The Knight of the « transformation » turned into a storm manager. With enough talent to be re-elected on April 24.
Since then, doubt has settled over his desire to regain a reforming posture. Does he want to act?, ask his own supporters. Can he?, wonder the others now that the voters have granted him a simple relative majority in the National Assembly.
“Dazed”, “blocked”, “absent”
You have 87.18% of this article left to read. The following is for subscribers only.