While still recovering from President Joe Biden’s fiasco at the debate and fearing a second Trump presidency, European political elites and media were shaken to the core by the prospect of Marine Le Pen’s National Rally forming the next government in France.
The right-wing National Rally received around 33 percent of the total vote, bringing the party close to a majority in the second round of vote set for July 7. The leftist New Popular Front, an alliance of socialist, communist, and green parties, came second with over 28 percent of the vote, ahead of President Emmanuel Macron’s centrists, which got nearly 20 percent.
The European and Western media painted a doom and gloom scenario for France, much like when President Trump took office in 2016. “The international media fear that the far-right’s accession to the premiership will destabilize France and erode its credit rating, and also that the turbulent aftershocks will weaken the European Union,” the leading French newspaper Le Monde noted.
Most mainstream European media outlets reacted to the French election outcome by heaping insults on once-beloved President Macron for calling an early election. They repeated allegations of racism and ‘far-right’ populism to discredit Le Pen’s party.
National Rally “campaigned on an anti-European and xenophobic program platform,” the German newspaper Die Tageszeitung complained. The “party wants to reduce France’s EU contribution, introduce a cap on immigration, restrict the freedom of movement of non-EU foreigners and introduce professional bans [in sensitive national security-related positions] for French people with dual nationality.” the German daily added.
“In the first round of voting, the [French] president got what he deserved for his ill-advised reaction to the European elections,” the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) wrote. Under a right-wing government, “France could become a difficult partner in the EU and NATO,” the newspaper warned.
The history won’t forgive Marcon for paving the way for a right-wing government, the widely-read German daily wrote. “A president, who unnecessarily jeopardizes his majority in parliament, can’t hope to be go graciously into the history books,” the FAZ added.
The prospect of seeing Trump and Le Pen taking power in 2024, triggered ‘panic’ within the globalist establishment. “Le Pen, Trump and liberal panic,” the headline in the Financial Times (UK) read. “Liberals are in for a long struggle as nationalist populism surges in the US and Europe,” the business daily added.
The European political class was joined by the left-wing street mobs refusing to accept the results of a democratic election. Notice the Antifa and pro-Hamas Palestinian flags waved by these angry ‘election deniers’ — hardly a French flag in sight.
Many European politicians and media outlets tired to float their version of ‘Russia collusion’ conspiracy. “Putin is the secret winner in Paris,” German news channel NTV claimed, insinuating that the leading French party is somehow in collusion with Vladimir Putin’s regime in Moscow.
“Mainstream European politicians have warned about the advance of the far right, after Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN) made historic gains in France’s snap elections, bringing the anti-immigration party closer than ever to power,” London-based Guardian newspaper commented.
“After the record-breaking gains became clear, Poland’s prime minister, Donald Tusk, warned about politicians who advocated for the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and sought untrammelled power,” the daily reported.
The National Rally’s victory in France galvanizes right-wing movements across Europe. Leader of the Dutch Freedom Party (PVV), Geert Wilders, was among the first to congratulate Le Pen following the Sunday result. Alice Weidel, head of Alternative for Germany (AfD), wished Le Pen’s party “best of luck,” German state TV ZDF reported.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Sunday unveiled a new alliance of European right-wing parties at the ceremony in Austria. The leaders of like-minded parties from the Czech Republic and Austria joined Hungary’s Orban.
[Excerpts from German and European news reports translated by the author]
CLICK HERE FOR FULL VERSION OF THIS STORY