France's President Emmanuel Macron arrives to address a joint meeting of Congress

L’internationalisme de Macron et le nouveau paradigme politique

May 10, 2018 Kemal Derviş

WASHINGTON, DC –La visite d’État du président français Emmanuel Macron aux États-Unis le mois dernier a été riche en contrastes. Malgré la cordialité des échanges, l’ordre du jour et le discours de Macron étaient presque diamétralement opposés à ceux du président américain Donald Trump. Macron devra toutefois relever un défi politique plus fondamental durant son mandat et la manière dont il s’y prendra pourrait montrer la voie à suivre pour la démocratie libérale.

S’adressant en anglais au Congrès américain, Macron a défendu un point de vue résolument internationaliste, appelant au renforcement des institutions internationales, au renouvellement de l’engagement en faveur d’échanges commerciaux basés sur les règles et à une adhésion sans réserve à la mondialisation. En ce qui concerne l’Iran, il a réaffirmé la nécessité de préserver l’accord sur le nucléaire conclu en 2015, un accord dont les États-Unis viennent de sortir à l’initiative de Trump, tout en appelant à le compléter sur des points qui ne sont pas inclus dans le texte actuel.

Macron soutient par ailleurs le projet de création de listes paneuropéennes pour les prochaines élections du Parlement européen en 2019. En tant que démocrate, il estime qu’une plus grande intégration de l’Union européenne va de pair avec le développement d’un espace politique véritablement européen.

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j. von Hettlingen Apr 4, 2019

Bill Emmott says people have been speaking of the rise of populism since Brexit and Trump’s election in 2016. However the term does no reflect “what is really at stake in national and regional elections around the world this year.” He claims the general elections in Israel, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Spain and the European Union in the upcoming months are all about a “real contest” between nationalism and internationalism.
While Trump highlights this division, by defending his protectionist policies, showing disdain for multilateral agreements and flouting international laws, Emmanuel Macron’s cosmopolitan worldview and ardent global agenda are diametrically opposed to Trump’s nativism. The French president calls for stronger international institutions, a recommitment to the rules-based system of free trade, and an embrace of globalisation.
The author explains that populism, unlike nationalism and internationalism, is not an ideology, but a “campaigning technique used by insurgent politicians of all stripes.” It thrives on people's feeling of a lack of political power, and its appeal as “a political epithet” diminishes with use. Populist leaders, once in power, “have to govern to voters’ liking, or else risk defeat at the next election.” It explains why Trump has turned his presidency into a permanent campaign, allowing him to continue to operate in an election mode.
In Italy, the Five Star Movement (M5S), used to be a protest movement, belongs to the political establishment since 2018, as the senior partner in a coalition with the right-wing League party. It has since suffered setback in a string of regional polls, “halving its vote from a year earlier.” The decline has less to do with its populist policy – the basic income for jobseekers – which still resonates with voters, but with the “strong nationalist rhetoric of its coalition partner.
The looming elections in Israel, India and Indonesia and the Philippines involve powerholders, who seek to remain in office. With the exception of Indonesia’s Joko Widodo, they all share a common strategy – fearmongering. India’s Narendra Modi, Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines, and Israel’s Binyamin Netanyahu, all “campaigned as populists but have governed as tough-guy nationalists.” They portray themselves as the only ones who can protect their countries from all threats – real and perceived, domestic and foreign. They trample on international institutions and laws, preferring bilateral relations with the US and/or China to multilateral ones.
Although politics In Europe are different, the author says “the key divisions are strikingly similar. The terms populist and Euroskeptic do not truly capture the rise of far-right parties” across Europe. No doubt they are “all nationalist, conservative, and generally opposed to immigration,” and their “law and order” agenda exploits “ cultural rather than military or geostrategic fears.” He says if the far right wins big in the April election in Spain and the European Parliament elections in May, “the right way to think about it will not be as an anti-EU phenomenon.”
Indeed, far right populists have abandoned their plan to dismantle the EU. Instead of a total “Brexit-style rejection”, they seek to change the bloc from within, which will have an impact on its political dynamics. This would “augur a further shift away from integration, and toward a more ad hoc intergovernmental approach for tackling issues related to immigration and the rule of law.” It remains to be seen whether coaltions across traditional party divides can be formed, which should be seen as something positive.
The author fears the “scope for top-down policies issued from Brussels would be significantly narrowed.” This might also enable each member state to pursue its “own policies toward Russia, Libya, and other third countries.” As a result, “there would be a broad retreat from efforts to negotiate common foreign and security policies.”
Now all eyes are on Macron’s pro-EU party, as it launched its campaign for the European Parliament elections last week. His pro-EU vision – a “European Renaissance” – might inspire voters beyond France’s borders. In some EU countries, however, support is growing for nationalist politicians who want to reinstate borders and roll back the European cooperation since its promotion in the post-war era. The nationalist-internationalist battle will be fiercely fought in May.
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Joulie benoit May 11, 2018

Il n’est pas nécessaire que Macron se rapproche du centre gauche où choisisse le centre droit. Les électeurs Français conservent une défiance importante à l’égard De leur classe politique, on peut les comprendre, ils choisiront Macron s’il obtient des résultats, s’il apporte un progrès évident dans la conduite d’un gouvernement, dans un pays où il est difficile de faire des réformes.
Cela semble bien parti, de nouveaux électeurs le rejoignent, alors qu’ils n’avaient pas voté pour lui, pourvu que ça dure !
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Joulie benoit May 11, 2018

La encore, je pense que cette analyse ne correspond pas à la réalité de la société Française : les transferts sociaux sont considérables en France, trop important même, ce qui freine le dynamisme que pourrait apporter une mondialisation plus poussée. La croissance Française est affaiblie par une dépense publique record, par la multiplication des emplois publics dans les collectivités locales. La justice sociale est même affaiblie par ces dérives. Ce qui compte c’est la connaissance parfaite du fonctionnement de la société et de ses dénis et des réformes qui en résultent.
Avec Macron il y a un progrès très sensible.
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