A far-right figure accustomed to anti-Semitic diatribes is dead. A monument to the Fifth Republic, a finalist in a presidential election, has gone. The disappearance of Jean-Marie Le Pen highlights the two sides of the founder of the National Front. The historical figure is the man of “detail” and xenophobic outings. The one who obtained nearly 5 million votes on April 21, 2002 pushed as many French people into the streets. Power cannot remain silent in the face of a moment in history.
But what words to find? Be careful, slippery terrain. At 1:57 p.m., François Bayrou complies with the exercise. The Prime Minister claims to place himself “beyond the controversies which were his favorite weapon and the necessary confrontations on the merits”. “JM Le Pen will have been a figure in French political life. We knew, by fighting him, what a fighter he was,” he writes.
Bayrou annoys the central block
As soon as the message was published, a faithful Béarnais hailed a “nice formula”. “François likes funeral orations. He would have written an identical message if he were not head of government,” notes this elected official. And then, doesn’t the reference to “confrontation” signify a political distancing? We must believe that it is insufficient. As soon as the message was published, the left had a lukewarm reaction to the death of the devil of the Republic. The term “controversies” is singled out for its lightness, the term “fighter” is mocked for its positive value. Silence about his political legacy would finally testify to guilty complacency.
Discontent is spreading among the former presidential majority. “A mediocre reaction. We don’t understand anything except that he is trying to spare the RN in his reaction,” fumes an Ensemble pour la République (EPR) deputy. A colleague criticizes a “convoluted” reaction. Jean-Marie Le Pen dies at a time when Macronie is undergoing a trial for collusion with the far right. Each word is read in this light, suspicion nestling behind any semantic ambiguity. Recognize a legacy, even qualities, but distance yourself from it: François Bayrou struggles to escape the contradictory injunctions that he has imposed on himself.
“We don’t write, we let others do it”
17 small lines. The Elysée chose a restrained communication after the death of the “Menhir”. Rather than crossing an obstacle, you might as well go around it. In a style resembling a Wikipedia entry, the Presidency of the Republic limits itself to retracing the political career of Jean-Marie Le Pen. His political work would now reveal “the judgment of History”. The Head of State, representing left-wing and frontist voters, delegates here to the sovereign people the appreciation of the action of Jean-Marie Le Pen. “It is without pretense and does not lapse into inelegance,” greets an EPR deputy.
The Minister of the Interior Bruno Retailleau also limited himself to mentioning the historical weight of his opponent, “who will undoubtedly have marked his era”. “We have the outdated idea that there is a time for everything,” notes those around him. “The controversy must fade away in the face of the mourning of loved ones. This is not the time to recall our disagreements.” Within the executive, a modest veil is placed over the hottest parts of the frontist’s life. No more than an ideological continuum is established between his daughter and him.
And then, silence. At the end of the afternoon, several tenors of the presidential camp, often quick to express themselves, had not reacted to the death of Jean-Marie Le Pen. How do you find the right formula for this death when you are in power? A former minister smiles: “We don’t write, we let others do it.” This avoids making mistakes.