As I write, François Bayrou is still speaking to the Assemblée Nationale, and the deputies of La France Insoumise have not given up their disgraceful heckling, despite having failed to prevent him from speaking. Bayrou, hardly an electrifying speaker, may even be grateful for the howls from the left side of the chamber, which is at least paying attention, while many on the right are staring at their laps or toying with their phones.
As for the substance, there are no surprises. Bayrou refused to use the word “suspension” in regard to pension reform, as the Socialists had demanded, although he did speak of a “remise en chantier,” while qualifying his promise by asserting that if no agreement was reached within a “strictly limited” period of time, the existing reform would go into effect. His predicament is hardly appetizing: to attract any support from the left, he must pull a rabbit from his hat, but all the imaginable rabbits will scare off his support on the right, and his government will fall. No rhetorical formula is going to change the fundamental arithmetic of an Assemblée without a workable majority.
On other issues, his announcements were expected. He’ll work toward a dose of proportionalism in legislative elections. He’ll try to rebuild Mayotte while restoring order. He’ll create a “bank of democracy” to provide financial support to political parties. His plodding style makes a striking counterpoint with the hysterization of hyper-mediatized political debate. I’m not sure that his government will survive.
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Good summary of where things stand. I also wrote about Bayrou’s announcements, although focused more on the heckling (maybe a bit flippantly).