“This, dear colleagues of the far left, is what differentiates civilization from barbarism, this is what differentiates a regular army from a terrorist organization.” The invective, directly addressed to the deputies of La France insoumise, is signed Marine Le Pen. The frontist boss, who is fighting so hard to get rid of this term “extreme”, therefore throws the qualifier back in the face of her political adversaries.
The times are changing. Once relegated to the outcasts, Marine Le Pen is now handing out patents of republicanism. On October 12, it was the leader of the rebellious deputies who she attacked: “Your friends, Madame Panot, they throw the bodies of women behind pick-ups and spit on them after having raped them and dismembered them, okay? Then you should objectively be modest.”
Statements like this are legion. Since the beginning of the month, the RN has taken advantage of the Mélenchonist party’s refusal to describe Hamas attacks as “terrorist” to bequeath to the rebellious formation the status of infringement. And gain, by contrast, in respectability. What better way to prove your innocence than to find someone else guilty? The far-right party also took the opportunity to cleanse itself of any suspicion of anti-Semitism. The frontist line is now clear: condemnation of terrorist acts is unanimous, as is support for Israel. Marine Le Pen also likes to repeat it: “Rebellious France has definitively chosen the anti-Republican camp,” she repeated again, on October 10, at the microphone of Europe 1. The RN is, I believe today, for many French people of Jewish faith, a shield against Islamist ideology.” Besides, don’t recent polls prove it? A survey, published by Ifop on October 16, indicates that 42% of French people trust Marine Le Pen to fight anti-Semitism, compared to only 17% for Jean-Luc Mélenchon…
How far away it seems, the time when Marine Le Pen criticized Jean-Luc Mélenchon for being François Hollande’s “broomstick”, or a pure product of the political system. The RN has a short memory and contemplates his reflection through an inverted mirror. He now wants to be a full member of the system and a slayer of “extremes”. The proof: the party’s position on the conflict in the Middle East is now aligned with that of the right and the majority.
On October 10, when she spoke on the subject in the hemicycle, Marine le Pen was even applauded by certain elected representatives of the presidential majority. She herself returns the favor by clapping her hands after Elisabeth Borne’s speech. “There is a clear game between the majority and the RN, they are constantly making short work of each other,” belches a former executive of the Lepéniste party.
This Tuesday, October 24, an image was widely circulated in frontist loops: that of the front page of Rivarol, an anti-Semitic far-right newspaper which, in its time, welcomed the declarations of Jean-Marie Le Pen. “Mélenchon demonized like Le Pen was yesterday,” headlines the weekly. Victory. Insoumise France has indeed regained the status of the unfrequented; the support of the anti-Semitic press title would be witness to this. At the RN, we rub our hands. Immediately, on Rivarol supports Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the circle is closed.”