Macron’s latest adversary might be his most dangerous yet
Article by The Spectator
WORLD 21 February 2024 - 18:00
Sunday was arguably the worst day of the year so far for the president, who likes to convey an image of a man in complete control. The glum-faced Minister of the Economy, Bruno Le Maire, appeared on television to announce that he has revised the Republic’s growth forecasts for 2024 downwards, from 1.4 per cent to 1 per cent of GDP. This means the state will need to make €10 billion (£8.5 billion) in additional savings from this year onwards.
Macron, the ex-banker, came to power in 2017 with a promise to make France an economic powerhouse but under his presidency public debt has soared to 112.5 per cent of annual GDP. Last year, France’s public debt topped €3 trillion (£2.6 trillion) for the first time. And to think this was the man who was in 2017 portrayed by the Economist as the president who walked on water. The truth is that Macron’s presidency is sinking. The issue that could drag him under is immigration.
The second piece of bad news on Sunday was the announcement by Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (NR) that Fabrice Leggeri has joined the party. Who? At first glance the 55-year-old career technocrat is an unlikely adversary of Macron; after all they come from the same milieu. Leggeri, like the president, is a graduate of ENA (L’École nationale d’administration), the finishing school for France’s bureaucratic elite.
Leggeri prided himself on his diligence and his devotion to duty. When he was nominated by Francois Hollande’s Socialist government in 2015 as the right man to head the EU’s border and coast guard agency he duly got the job. Once in his role, Leggeri’s straight talking swiftly made enemies of ‘powerful lobbies’.
Within weeks of taking command, Frontex highlighted the modus operandi of the criminal networks organising the passage of migrants across the Mediterranean. The networks would send out barely seaworthy boats full of migrants knowing that they would be rescued by European vessels who would then transport them to Italy.
In April 2016, following the massacre of 130 Parisians by an Islamist terror cell – two of whom had entered France posing as migrants – Frontex stated in its annual report: ‘The Paris attacks in November 2015 clearly demonstrated that irregular migratory flows could be used by terrorists to enter the EU’.
Leggeri laid bare the ease with which migrants could enter Europe unchecked. ‘False declarations of nationality are rife among nationals who are unlikely to obtain asylum in the EU,’ ran the Frontex report. ‘With no thorough check or penalties in place for those making such false declarations, there is a risk that some persons representing a security threat to the EU may be taking advantage of this situation.’
He demanded more staff to police the borders, and advised that they should be armed. His hardline approach horrified NGOs and their allies in the European parliament. They saw Frontex’s main responsibility as ‘escorts for illegal crossings’.
Leggeri was eventually forced to resign in April 2022 after NGOs, politicians and journalists ran a lengthy smear campaign against his leadership. In particular, he was brought down by allegations that Frontex worked in cahoots with the Greek government to conduct illegal pushbacks of migrant boats. (Leggeri denied Frontex was involved in the pushbacks.)
At the time of his resignation, Le Figaro spoke to a senior Frontex official who said Leggeri was removed because ‘the pressure from pro-migrant elected representatives and NGOs, who are leading the charge in Brussels against the Leggeri line, was too strong.’ The ‘powerful lobbies’ who Leggeri believes forced him out include not only von der Leyen but also Emmanuel Macron.
Leggeri is out for revenge. His message between now and June’s European elections will be a simple one: don’t be fooled by the rhetoric of Paris and Brussels about combating illegal immigration because in private they are all for free movement. He, on the other hand, intends to ‘combat the migratory submersion, which the European Commission and the Eurocrats do not consider a problem, but rather a project: I can testify to this’.
The former Frontex boss will be an awkward opponent for the Paris elite. After all, he’s one of them. On Monday he went with Jordan Bardella, the president of the National Rally, on a fact-finding mission to the French-Italian border. He didn’t look particularly comfortable in the limelight, saying only that he had joined the party ‘to serve the public interest’.
Bardella, on the other hand, was only too happy to chat to the press. ‘It’s clear that having Fabrice Leggeri at my side is a real asset for the credibility and future implementation of our migration project,’ he said. Bardella also titillated the media by promising Leggeri won’t be the only significant figure to rally to the party in the coming months.
With France in such a sorry state, Macron’s only strategy to combat the rise of the right is to scare-monger. In a newspaper interview published on February 19, he said that he ‘had never considered that the NR or Reconquête! [Eric Zemmour’s party] were part of the “republican arc”’.
The newspaper in question was L’Humanité, traditionally the organ of the Communist party. It says much about Macron’s disintegrating authority that the ‘president of the rich’ is now reduced to searching for votes among Reds.
Caliber.Az
1
|
Phantom arms deal: How false claims aim to derail Baku-Tehran diplomacy Azerbaijan embraces "forewarned is forearmed" principle
25 July 2024 - 15:34
|
2
|
Could France’s anti-NATO rhetoric trigger domestic turmoil? Leftist Mélenchon's stance sparks historical echoes
24 July 2024 - 10:24
|
3
|
Azerbaijan: The new powerhouse of aluminium production amid global market strain "Green" era's requirement
25 July 2024 - 17:05
|
4
|
Brussels' bait and Yerevan's rush to swallow it The visa-free temptation
24 July 2024 - 09:00
|
5
|
West-backed Armenia likely to spark conflict with Azerbaijan rather than seek peace Caliber.Az reveals expert prognoses
25 July 2024 - 11:10
|
Venezuela struggles with gas shortages ahead of key presidential vote
27 July 2024 - 05:04
Japan addressing increasing incidents of customer harassment
Service culture under strain27 July 2024 - 03:05
Swiss spots struggle with social media-driven visitor impact
Tourism vs. nature27 July 2024 - 01:03
German chancellor tackles EU expansion, internal reform challenges
Path forward26 July 2024 - 23:03
Italian newspaper explores Azerbaijan's ancient Albanian churches
26 July 2024 - 21:08
Azerbaijani prosecutor general declares ties with Türkiye as strategic partnership
PHOTO26 July 2024 - 20:55
Azerbaijan, Italy strengthening military relations
PHOTO26 July 2024 - 20:42
China demands withdrawal of US nuclear weapons from Europe
26 July 2024 - 20:29
Pentagon concedes to spreading anti-Sinovac propaganda in Philippines
26 July 2024 - 20:16
COP29 presidency team hosts events to tackle key climate agenda issues
26 July 2024 - 20:03
Israel targets Türkiye’s TRT Haber team covering Al-Aqsa mosque incident
26 July 2024 - 19:51
COP20 president: Azerbaijan should lead with ambition at COP29
26 July 2024 - 19:38
Turkish defence minister, Azerbaijani ambassador discuss strengthening military ties
26 July 2024 - 19:25
FBI seeking to interview Trump as part of assassination attempt investigation
26 July 2024 - 19:12
US presidential candidate cites potential path to victory with Biden out of race
26 July 2024 - 18:58
Turkish MP confirms plans for official Azerbaijani school in Istanbul
26 July 2024 - 18:44
US vice president’s call for peace in Gaza sparks controversy with Israel
26 July 2024 - 18:30
FM: Italy to appoint ambassador to Syria after 10 years
26 July 2024 - 18:17
Head of Georgian Parliament blames opposition for compromising national safety
Aid to Ukraine at Georgia’s expense26 July 2024 - 18:03
South Caucasus on edge: West fuels Armenia's war drums
Yerevan clings to deceitful rhetoric26 July 2024 - 18:02
Media: Iran arms Hezbollah with advanced weapons
26 July 2024 - 17:49
Bolsonaro intends to run for Brazilian presidency in 2026, citing confidence in winning
26 July 2024 - 17:36
Armenian PM visits modernised Margara checkpoint on Turkish border
VIDEO26 July 2024 - 17:22
Boeing considers to convert its top fighter into an electronic warfare jet
Caliber.Az on YouTube26 July 2024 - 17:17
Belarus ready to expand cooperation with North Korea
26 July 2024 - 17:09
EU appoints new special representative for South Caucasus
26 July 2024 - 17:01
Azerbaijani-Chinese partnership defies "first among equals" attitudes
Rising above geopolitical cynicism26 July 2024 - 16:55
Armenia's militarization: A "peace agenda" with an armed approach
Yerevan must revisit recent historical lessons26 July 2024 - 16:42
Azerbaijan approves cooperation pacts with Türkiye, Kazakhstan
26 July 2024 - 16:33
Media: US informs Iran of readiness to return to nuclear deal
26 July 2024 - 16:29
Turkish forces take down PKK terrorists in coordinated Iraq and Syria raids
VIDEO26 July 2024 - 16:16
Israeli air strikes hit Hezbollah outposts in response to rocket fire
26 July 2024 - 16:03
Kremlin spox: EU ridicules Orban over Moscow visit
26 July 2024 - 15:51
Armenian parliamentary delegation visits Georgia to strengthen bilateral ties
26 July 2024 - 15:38
Washington talks peace while arming Yerevan
26 July 2024 - 15:38
Travellers from 13 nations explore rebuilding of Karabakh, East Zangazur
PHOTO26 July 2024 - 15:25
European Commission transfers €1.5 billion from frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine's defence
26 July 2024 - 15:25
Trump says US to destroy Iran in case of his assassination
26 July 2024 - 15:12
Kremlin declares dialogue with West futile amid hostility toward Russia
26 July 2024 - 14:59
Somalia, Azerbaijan share common positions on many international forums
Minister’s statement26 July 2024 - 14:46