The candidate “Reconquest! “Discussed Thursday March 10 on TF1 then LCI against candidate LR. Among the topics covered: NATO, immigration, French identity, economy, ecology… A look back at a (very/too) noisy debate.
It didn’t take long to see the criticisms fuse. Valérie Pécresse, the first to speak – facing a nodding Eric Zemmour, with a smirk – opened the debate by talking about the war in Ukraine. She explained that she wanted, with Europe, to help the Ukrainians, while refusing the embargo proposed by the United States, then reproached her interlocutor for his “Munich spirit, which is to say that Ukraine does not exist ; to be fascinated by the strength of Hitler, of Putin, as you did […] The inhumanity you have shown in not welcoming Ukrainian refugees, for example. You are discredited to preside over France. » Response of the interested party? “You had a Gaullist grandfather but you forgot what you learned. Do you think that General de Gaulle was not close to Russia, that he did not go to see Stalin in 1944 because the constraint of the allies was too strong? In 1968 he had relations with USSR! The Gaullist tradition is the rapprochement with Russia. There followed cries from both sides, “you are lying” from Pécresse, sneers from the Zemmour side, accompanied by “you are only a technocrat! »
Read also: Presidential poll: Pécresse returns to Zemmour, Jadot nibbles
NATO and Europe
Following on from the Ukrainian question, Gilles Bouleau and Ruth Elkrief asked the candidates for their views on NATO and Europe. Candidate LR, who is often late in terms of speaking time, declared that “Mr. Zemmour is an ideologue but he is wrong about everything […] On Putin, on NATO: because we must remain within the integrated command, because we need a Europe of defence. We are at a time of hope for Europe with the United States looking elsewhere. I want a sovereign France and without Europe you won’t get there! After yet another smile, this time accompanied by a shrug of the shoulders, the far-right candidate retorted that “de Gaulle himself left the integrated command in 1966”, adding: “You are for the opposite of what de Gaulle wanted. You want to submit to the United States within the framework of Europe. You have the same chimera as Mr. Macron but that does not surprise me because you agree on everything. »
Gas and oil
On the subject of how the crisis could impact the French, and more particularly on the rise in gas and oil prices, Valérie Pécresse explained that “Europe does not agree to declare an embargo because European countries are too dependent but we have to get out of this dependency. We can do it with carbon-free nuclear power and biogas. What about the rise in prices for the French population? “We will have to make long-term gas supply contracts. I would like the additional taxes collected by the government to be redistributed to the French. Éric Zemmour, for his part, proposed “emergency measures, namely the blocking of prices at the pump at 1.8 euros per liter, but also the reimbursement of half of the mileage costs of the 18 million French people who are going to work. »
Refugees and Immigration
Hot topic of the presidential election: immigration. The president of the Ile-de-France region spoke of her “Christian and humanist principles” which made her say “for the reception of Ukrainian refugees”, castigating in passing the statements of the other debater. The latter replied that “refugees want to go to Poland because they are close to their husbands and their fathers. Here too, between insults – “everything is bogus with you Madame Pécresse in the fight against immigration” – and screams, the two candidates presented their programs on immigration, each in their own way. Valérie Pécresse questioned the candidate on the procedures for deporting illegal immigrants, who wants “zero immigration”: “Mr. Zemmour says he wants to deport illegal immigrants, but how is he going to land planes in the countries of origin? “. In return, Éric Zemmour replied that he wanted to “put coercive measures: the abolition of visas (or visas given on a case-by-case basis), and the blocking of Western Union fund transfers”, adding: “I do not want more than young French people go abroad. »
French identity
The most inaudible theme of the evening. And for good reason, diametrically opposed on the notions of Islam and Islamism – Pécresse: “You have to know what you are fighting against; I do not confuse Islamism and Islam”; Zemmour: “Islam and Islamism are the same thing. I distinguish between Islam, which is totalitarian, and Muslims. -, the two candidates kept on cutting each other off. Pécresse explained that she “fought against the burqa in the public space”, that she “had the Region pass the first law for secularism”, that we “are fighting against the burkini” and that the ” veil is a sign of submission which will be prohibited in public services”. For the candidate “Reconquest! “, the speech was firm:” There is everything in the texts: execution of homosexuals, veiling of women, confinement of women and others. The French Muslims can have a practice à la Française, that is to say not to display themselves, as the Jews and Christians did. ” After this presentation, the names of birds, accusations and cries resumed even more: when Zemmour attacked: “She was, as a minister, not against the veil in the universities” or again: “I do not I never went to a school with veiled kids. Your double game appears there in front of the French”, Pécresse answered: “There are Nazi salutes in your meetings. Marine Le Pen says you are surrounded by Nazis”…
pensions
Following Emmanuel Macron’s announcement of wanting to push back the retirement age to 65, the President of the Region began by criticizing the president-candidate: “Macron candidate promises everything that Macron president has not done” , before attacking the program of his interlocutor: “There are 150 billion expenses in the program of Mr Zemmour […] You have no courageous reform like the RSA for example. “On her program, Valérie Pécresse explained that she will do” this reform until the age of 65 except for those who have jobs that are too difficult […] I will eliminate 200,000 civil servant positions […] I will set up a net minimum wage in retirement. Barely finished the presentation, Eric Zemmour engaged: “64 years with us for the retirement age, that will save us 20 billion. I am not announcing public workforce reductions because these are only verbal words, no one is doing them. And then it will be necessary to hire in certain sectors (justice, health). I propose to resume Mr. Sarkozy’s reform on decentralization as well. Then a war of figures and methods took place on issues related to the fight against social fraud or economic relief programs.
Reindustrialization
Valérie Pécresse, like Éric Zemmour, said she wanted to “debureaucratize […] changing and simplifying standards and streamlining procedures. If candidate LR relied on “European preference for our products and a carbon border tax to protect agriculture”, her rival focused his speech on “a reduction in charges, the proposal for a sovereign fund backed by the booklet A and the establishment of tax-free zones in towns or places where there was no industry.
Ecology
Last theme of the evening. For the far-right candidate, “we are the country that emits the least CO2. We are far from being the first to have to undertake this. Madame Pécresse was against nuclear power in 2018 and for wind turbines and now is for […] I propose a big nuclear program […] It is a scandal to have closed Fessenheim. I wish to open 14 nuclear reactors and I am for the extension of the power stations to 60 years. » Response from Valérie Pécresse: « On nuclear power, I agree, but we have to walk on two feet: nuclear power and renewables. There are other sectors such as hydrogen or biogas also to be taken into account. »
The debate ended with the question: “Could you work together if elected in 2022?” »
Valérie Pécresse: “I have a competent team that can deal with Macron and can make the reforms that Mr. Zemmour does not want to make. I cannot work with him if he does not want to make reforms. »
Éric Zemmour: “Madame Pécresse is Madame 8:02 p.m. because she will call for a vote for Macron. It is the same. She uses the same words, the same ideas: she is a right-wing progressive. We must not make reforms, but a revolution. »
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