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PARIS – French Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire’s Elysee palace ambitions have long been an open secret in Paris political circles, but his recent clashes with the French president have fueled speculation the popular minister may be trying to topple Emmanuel Macron. have been
In recent weeks, the economy minister has increasingly attracted attention for ignoring instructions from Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne’s office on going it alone and making public statements.
In true French style, a truce ensued Bakers.
In a rare public display of tension earlier this month, Macron criticized the economy ministry’s efforts to help bakers facing skyrocketing energy bills in what read as a rebuke directed at Le Maire. During a press conference, Macron criticized a government helpline set up by Le Maire’s ministry.
“I tried the number for the helpline I was given, and guess what? this does not work. I’m fed up with helplines everywhere,” he told a group of bakers gathered at the Elysee palace.
Several advisers at the Elysee Palace reported that the French president, who is known to run a tight ship, was incensed that Le Maire stepped forward and announced a series of measures to support the bakers, Macron himself Was planning to announce. playbook paris, Speaking on French television, Le Maire did not deny he may have been the target of Macron’s comments.
Reports of Macron losing his temper during cabinet meetings are familiar in French politics, but disagreements are rarely brought out in public.
“In politics you have to put aside your ego, your sensitivity,” Macron said. Told BFMTV after the controversy. “Our French partners are not interested in whether there are difficulties between one person or the other,” he said.
The tussle between the President and his minister made headlines in political circles. Aurore Berge, head of Macron’s renaissance party in parliament, summed up Le Maire’s attitude to Macron on the issue more brutally: “Basically he’s saying ‘I’m Bruno Le Maire and screw you’.”
It is not the first time Le Maire has castigated Macron and his loyalists, who note that the economy minister often ignores the prime minister’s office and actively cultivates his own network of lawmakers and politicians.
“The President doesn’t like it when someone isn’t a team player and tries to grab the limelight, so he put [Le Maire] Back to your place. We only have four or five years to prove ourselves and some are already wondering what comes next,” said a government adviser, commenting on recent tensions inside the government.
“Bruno Le Maire never gave up on the idea that he would become president. He is a loyal minister but he feels that his stature is equal to that of Macron.
Mayor 2.0
A graduate of L’École Nationale d’Administration, France’s prestigious school for political classes, Le Maire spent his life in the corridors of power, rapidly rising through the ranks of the French government to hold several ministerial positions. Le Maire served as Secretary of State for European Affairs and Minister of Agriculture under former President Nicolas Sarkozy, who referred to him as “Baby Bruno” – a sarcasm at a perceived rival.
Fluent German-speakers also enjoy a reputation as a cultured individual, who quotes Aristotle at the press conference and Take pride being a friend of the author Michelle Houellebecq. In his spare time, Le Maire writes novels (rumor has it that he also wrote Cheap romance novels under the pseudonym “Duke William” when he was a student).
His perceived global standing could be an asset in a future presidential race. The powerful minister has built an international reputation in European capitals and in Brussels where he has adopted Paris’ interventionist approach on industrial policy. American Big Tech and their tax fight against it difficult language against the US also made him a major player in the troubled transatlantic relationship.
Election Display that Le Maire is the most popular minister in Macron’s government and he became even more popular after successfully shepherding through France coronavirus pandemic while he defended massive aid measures to help businesses and consumers recover from the crisis.
Le Maire heads one of the government’s largest and most important ministries, which includes the industry and digital portfolio, and as one of the few veterans around Macron, he is in prime position for succession.
Harris Interactive pollster Jean-Daniel Levy said, “On the centre-right and right of the political spectrum – where Le Maire is positioning herself – you need to show you can master economics.”
“He is playing the ‘credibility’ card … He is also trying to carefully develop his voice, he is not on the same line as Emmanuel Macron when he calls for an end to the principle of government,” he said. Said end of subsidy after COVID-19.
Among the key challenges Le Maire will face as a contender for the top job will be the need to shed his image as a big spender during the pandemic – if he wants to convince voters he is a stable at the top. There will be hands. In his New Year’s address, Le Maire called for an end to “the burden on public spending, which leads to an interest rate hangover”, while Macron has been more careful about making abrupt cuts to subsidies.
Macron cannot run for a third term and, while he is barely into his second term, the succession race is already being openly discussed in the corridors of power in Paris. The next election is scheduled for 2027 and hopefuls for the top post include former prime minister Edouard Philippe, interior minister Gérald Darmanin and Macron ally François Bayro.
If the economy minister decides to run for the French presidency in 2027, it would not be his first attempt at the biggest prize in French politics. Formerly a rising star of the conservative UMP party, Le Maire suffered a humiliating defeat in the party’s primaries in 2016, garnering only 2.4 percent of the vote, giving credence to those who say she has the charisma and France lacks the qualities of the highest office.
Now, he hopes to return as the battle-hardened politician who successfully steered France through turbulent times. In private, Le Maire discussed with reporters the lessons learned since his failed presidential bid and what his priorities would be in forming a government.
In September, Le Maire was named to work on the manifesto of Macron’s Renaissance party, a role that positioned him as one of the potential successors to Macron’s movement.
But his top-class image could prove a disadvantage in a potential duel with another conservative heavyweight – Philippe – who is now mayor of the coastal city of Le Havre. Le Maire consistently ranks as the most popular minister in Macron’s government, but Philippe is more popular than her, said Mathieu Gaillard, director of research at polling firm Ipsos.
“The positions of Philippe and Le Maire are almost identical. Le Maire has more of a technocratic aura while Philippe is considered closer to the local people,” Gaillard said.
Le Maire is hoping to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor at the economy ministry – none other than Macron. But with four years to go until the 2027 performance, a looming recession and the ongoing war in Ukraine, walking the talk may prove more difficult than expected.
Pauline de Saint Remy and Paul de Villepin contributed reporting,