If the Xavier Bertrand hypothesis is still not buried for Emmanuel Macron, the former must now convince the RN and Marine Le Pen to hope to glimpse the doors of Matignon.
The essentials
- On Tuesday, after an interview with the leading figures of the Republican Right, Emmanuel Macron was “with a view to appointing Xavier Bertrand” at Matignon, rejecting the candidacies of Bernard Cazeneuve and Thierry Beaudet.
- A trail swept away that same afternoon, by the threat of censure brandished by the National Rally (RN) if the president of the Hauts-de-France region were to be appointed as Prime Minister. One can easily imagine that the NFP would do the same, enough to bring down the new government barely appointed.
- However, according to a close friend of the head of state to Le Figaro, Emmanuel Macron would rather consider a “political” solution. And the presidency would continue to put forward the names of two experienced personalities, namely Xavier Bertrand and Bernard Cazeneuve.
- Xavier Bertrand would therefore have the favors of the President of the Republic, but must now convince the RN and Marine Le Pen. The president of the Hauts-de-France region has already tried to get closer to Sébastien Chenu by giving him a role as an intermediary until Marine Le Pen. “The RN will immediately censor you if you are appointed. No bluffing, no double-talk on our part on this subject,” Sébastien Chenu immediately retorted to him, by text message, according to information from Politico.
Live
09:23 – “We will oppose Bertrand as a priority,” assures Chenu
“We will primarily oppose Xavier Bertrand (…) We know his political position, we know his record, we know his actions (…). He is someone who in reality has no backbone. He is someone who works for himself. He is a man of communication,” said Sébastien Chenu, elected member of the National Rally this Wednesday morning on LCI.
09:19 – For Chenu (RN), Bertrand shows “XXL mythomania”
This Wednesday morning on LCI, RN MP Sébastien Chenu confirmed the comments published in Politico concerning his exchanges with Xavier Bertrand by SMS, giving more details: “I sent him a little SMS yesterday (…), to tell him to stop spreading this kind of rumors (…) to try to be nominated, (he) said that he received assurances from the National Rally, that we would not oppose him. I said again that he would be the first on the list to whom we would oppose”. He also accused Xavier Bertrand of “a kind of XXL mythomania”. “It’s the bluff of the insurance agent who is trying to make Emmanuel Macron believe, in order to be nominated a little by force, that in fact everyone will be benevolent towards him”, he concluded.
09:10 – “For us, it’s no”, the RN closed to discussion on the Bertrand case
From now on, the work for Xavier Bertrand is looking extremely difficult. Sébastien Chenu is openly against it, making it difficult to try to convince Marine Le Pen not to censor him. In addition, Marine Le Pen has already clearly indicated her categorical refusal to see the northerner at Matignon. She “told the PR last week” reports a heavyweight of the RN to Politico. “For us, it’s no; we’ve seen him at work, we know him by heart, as a minister, in the Region, at the head of the UMP”, he continues, still in the columns of Politico, this Wednesday, September 4.
09:03 – Xavier Bertrand “has no convictions”, deplores Éric Ciotti
This Wednesday, Éric Ciotti reaffirmed his hostility to Xavier Bertrand on France 2, in the program “Les 4V” on Télématin: “Mr. Bertrand is the false right (…) a right that votes left. He has no convictions, he is not sincere, has always betrayed the right and I would not give him my trust.”
08:59 – Bruno Retailleau (LR) shows his support for Xavier Bertrand
“We will not of course oppose the appointment of Xavier Bertrand” as Prime Minister, confirmed this Wednesday morning on BFMTV, Bruno Retailleau, president of the LR group in the Senate. Xavier Bertrand is “in our family”, he indicated. “We want a Prime Minister of cohabitation, that is to say a Prime Minister who applies the Constitution of the Fifth Republic, article 20, it is the government that determines and leads the policy of the nation, it is not the President of the Republic”, he specifies.
08:55 – “It is obvious that the RN will censor you immediately,” assures Chenu
Still according to information from Politico, Sébastien Chenu’s strategy to try to rally Marine Le Pen to his cause or at least avoid a quick motion of censure from the RN in the event of your nomination to Matignon does not seem to be going in the right direction. “Beyond the ill-advised bluff, it is obvious that the RN will immediately censor you if you were nominated. No bluff, no double-talk on our part on this subject,” Sébastien Chenu (RN) told Xavier Bertrand in a text message. “Bertrand left it in read,” the media specifies.
08:51 – Xavier Bertrand tasks Sébastien Chenu with convincing Marine Le Pen
Rather acclaimed by Emmanuel Macron for Matignon, Xavier Bertrand is facing a major obstacle: the National Rally and an automatic motion of censure on its part if the president of the Hauts-de-France region were appointed Prime Minister. This is why, according to information from Politico, Xavier Bertrand tried to contact Sébastien Chenu (RN), close to the leader of the group in the National Assembly, and “asked him to convince Marine Le Pen not to censure him”.
03/09/24 – 22:53 – With Cazeneuve, Bertrand more “stable” than Castets?
END OF LIVE – This is in any case what a close friend of Emmanuel Macron is saying to AFP, including The Figaro echoes. Like the socialist Bernard Cazeneuve, the boss of Hauts-de-France, Xavier Bertrand, would ensure “more stability” than the candidate of the New Popular Front Lucie Castets. “There are reservations towards them, red lines of substance and method, but not necessarily immediate censorship”, it is suggested.
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This Tuesday, September 3, 2024, according to information from Parisianthe Élysée organized a phone call between Emmanuel Macron, Gérard Larcher, Laurent Wauquiez and Bruno Retailleau. In other words, the three leading lights of the Republican Right. According to the daily, the issue was the appointment of the future Prime Minister, and the Head of State now seems ready to “appoint Xavier Bertrand”. A dramatic turn of events after the revelations yesterday by L’Opinion about a potential appointment of the President of the CESE, Thierry Beaudet, in place of Gabriel Attal.
While the strained relations between Emmanuel Macron and Xavier Bertrand are not new, the President of the Republic seems to have ruled out Bernard Cazeneuve from the race for Matignon. The latter wants to reverse the pension reform, and he will not be supported by the socialists, thus risking rapid censorship. During the phone call this Tuesday morning, Thierry Beaudet’s name was not even mentioned. For his part, the former head of state Nicolas Sarkozy indicated last Friday in the columns of Le Figaro that a “right-wing prime minister” was necessary, stating that the name Xavier Bertrand could be “a good choice”. Will this weighty support be enough?
A time supported by heavyweights of Macronie
During the month of August, Xavier Bertrand enjoyed a good popularity rating and real support for his candidacy for Matignon. His profile was acclaimed by the right wing of Macron’s party, including staunch Republicans. “He is a great Republican among Republicans and a great regional president,” declared Sabrina Agresti-Roubache, the resigning Secretary of State for Urban Affairs, on La Grande Interview, Tuesday, July 30 on CNews. The day before, on France 2, the Bertrand case was already supported by the resigning Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, close to the elected official from the North: “He is a politician with great competence,” he could “greatly serve France.” “I have my friends, but I am not the President of the Republic,” indicated the number 3 of the resigning government.
And the support doesn’t stop there. “If I had been elected President of the Republic, I would probably have chosen Xavier Bertrand” as Prime Minister. “He’s a very good candidate, against Lucie Castets, there’s no match,” declared the President of the Ile-de-France region, Valérie Pécresse, on France Inter on August 5. A minister even indicated to Politico Politico that the appointment of Xavier Bertrand to Matignon would allow “pressure to be put on Wauquiez” or at least force the leader of the LR in the National Assembly to “come and discuss, really” with the central bloc.
Field man, open to compromise
The profile of the president of the Hauts-de-France region, however, appears to be one that could allow Emmanuel Macron to speak to both the right and the left. The “scent of cohabitation” desired by the head of state would take on its full meaning. “We need an emergency government, with the Republicans, the independents, the different parties of Mr. Macron and perhaps also men and women of good will who clearly want our country not to be blocked, paralyzed in the Assembly,” Xavier Bertrand had indicated on France 2, before the “Olympic truce” decreed by the President of the Republic.
Xavier Bertrand benefits from another asset that could please the tenant of the Elysée, playing the territory card. A man of the field, close to the people, Xavier Bertrand has been the president of the Hauts-de-France region for 8 years now, an advantage for Emmanuel Macron often criticized for his lack of empathy towards the French and his disconnection from Paris. The local elected official can also highlight his skills in budget management, as many assets that make the 59-year-old man a candidate who is both credible and “Macron compatible” to cross the doors of the Hôtel de Matignon.
Who is Xavier Bertrand?
Born on March 21, 1965 in Châlons-sur-Marne, Xavier Bertrand began campaigning for the RPR at the age of 16. After studying law, he became an insurance agent while also getting involved in politics. In 2002, he became a member of parliament in the second constituency of Aisne. In 2004, he was Secretary of State for Health Insurance and then Minister of Health and Solidarity.
After supporting Nicolas Sarkozy in his campaign for the 2007 presidential election, Xavier Bertrand was appointed Minister of Labor, Social Relations and Solidarity in François Fillon’s government. In 2010, he became Minister of Labor, Employment and Health and Mayor of the city of Saint-Quentin.
After François Hollande was elected President of the Republic in 2012, Xavier Bertrand left his ministerial portfolio, but was re-elected as MP for the 2nd constituency of Aisne. Former Secretary General of the UMP (2008-2010), he remains Mayor of Saint-Quentin. During the 2014 municipal elections, he was re-elected in the first round as Mayor of the city with 52.73% of the vote.
During the 2015 regional elections, he was propelled as a candidate in the new large Nord-Pas-de-Calais-Picardie region. He faced Marine Le Pen (FN) and Pierre de Saintignon (PS). Against all expectations, the National Front came out on top in the first round. The Socialist Party then decided to withdraw its candidate to counter Marine Le Pen. Xavier Bertrand was finally elected in the second round with 57.77% of the vote. He took office as president of the Nord-Pas-de-Calais-Picardie region in January 2016 and was re-elected in June 2021 with 52.37% of the vote. In 2021, he failed to be invested by Les Républicains for the presidential election.