The exercise of the vows is special this year for Emmanuel Macron. The Head of State will deliver this traditional speech in the costume of an almost candidate President. Four of his predecessors have already known such a situation: Valéry Giscard d’Estaing in 1980, François Mitterrand in 1987, Jacques Chirac in 2001 and Nicolas Sarkozy in 2011. Emmanuel Macron has enough to draw from these interventions as the four resonate with the themes that will occupy the Head of State in 2022: Europe, crisis, energy independence and… re-election attempt.
1980: Giscard and “strong France” which “must remain so”
The last wishes to the French from the first non-Gaullist president of the Fifth Republic announce the revenge that is being prepared with François Mitterrand and the socialist and communist left. Giscard thus insists on the “big country” what is France and who “Must remain so”. “It takes little to destroy the image of a nation: laxity, impatience, disunity”, he said. The centrist waves the red rag when he says that “1981 will be another difficult year” : “In 1981, we cannot count on facilities from outside. We can only count on our own strengths ”, adds Giscard, who asks his compatriots “To distinguish what is important and what is reasonable” (him…).
In this eight-minute speech delivered in the golden age of nuclear power in France, Emmanuel Macron could draw two references: the insistence on “progress” and “Optimism”. And of course the defense of the atom: “The share of our electricity of national origin which was 45% in 1973, will reach 70% at the end of 1981, explains Giscard. The lace around our neck will be loosened as much. “
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1987: Mitterrand and the “duty to protect [la France] against its divisions “
The Socialist President, forced into cohabitation with Jacques Chirac since the legislative elections of 1986, also takes advantage of his seventh wishes to the French to sow in view of the upcoming presidential election. After starting his speech on “crisis [qui] hits hard “, called to “the peace” with the announced nuclear disarmament of the Americans and the Soviets, then rejoicing at the prospect of seeing the fall, five years later, “The borders which still stand between the twelve States of the Community”, Mitterrand clearly ends his speech on the upcoming presidential election.
He thus formulates the wish “That the French express themselves clearly on a few essential choices and that they do so, if possible, in a spirit of tolerance”. Facetious, he refuses to “List these choices”. “The candidates will do it in due time”, he said before, all the same, weaving the themes of his future campaign: “Nothing will be possible without the religion of effort, initiative and creation, without the help of youth, he displays. Everything will go through knowledge, training, research, culture. ” Mitterrand evokes the “Republic”, “Political democracy but also economic and social” and insists on “Fruits of labor [qui] must be fairly shared “, on “National solidarity [qui] must inspire our laws ”.
Like many of his successors, the one who easily beat Chirac a few months later dons the costume of the “Protective President”: “It was also my duty to protect [la France] against its divisions, than to testify for the deep unity of its people without ever subscribing to the abandonment of its principles, without ever denying my own convictions, he said. During the coming months, which can be expected to experience turbulence, your trust will help me. ”
To review these wishes on the Ina website, it’s this way.
2001: Chirac, the euro and the call for “national cohesion”
Europe is also on the menu for the one who will be re-elected – for five years this time – facing Jean-Marie Le Pen: four hours after this speech, “300 million Europeans will now share the same currency”, the euro. “It is Europe that is moving forward. It is Europe that is progressing ”, welcomes Chirac. Three months after September 11, he calls for “Europe is asserting itself”. “The euro is a victory for Europe, adds Chirac. Our continent is finally asserting its identity and its power. ”
Much less directly than his predecessors, the one who was elected in 1995 on the promise of reducing “social fracture”, ends his speech on the “National cohesion”. When he evokes “The state” who must “Assume its responsibilities in the service of citizens”, “To find its place, to fulfill its missions, while respecting the initiatives which come from the vital forces of our company and our local authorities”, Chirac actually speaks of him. He finishes : “Whatever the recent trials and uncertainties of the future, I know that you want to bring to life the values which are those of our democracy, of our Republic. That you want to strengthen our national cohesion. That you want to move forward, succeed and make France succeed. ” With him, five more years, obviously.
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2011: Sarkozy, the financial crisis and the warning against “the danger of standing still”
Crisis. Nicolas Sarkozy can no longer get out, three years after that of subprime and in full that of sovereign debts. “This crisis which punishes 30 years of planetary disorders in the economy, trade, finance, currency, this incredible crisis, undoubtedly the most serious since the Second World War, this crisis is not over”, he attacks. Who other than him to lead France “In the storm” ? “There are reasons to hope, promises Nicolas Sarkozy who already knows his main opponent for 2012, François Hollande. We must, we can remain confident in the future. Because if so many countries have experienced insurmountable difficulties, France has held on. She resisted. ”
The Head of State warns: “2012 will be the year of all the risks but also of all the possibilities. Of all the hopes, if we know how to meet the challenges. Of all the dangers, if we stand still. “ “French, French”, be careful if you decide to change captain: “Deferring the choices because they are difficult is the worst option. When we decide too late, the price to pay is higher. The greatest sufferings. In 2012, the fate of France may once again change. ” Long before Macron and his “Rule until the last quarter of an hour”, Sarkozy does not want to suggest that he already has his head for his campaign (when he is): “In five months we have a presidential election. It is an important deadline. When the time comes, it’s up to you. But until then, I must continue to act because the history of the decades to come is being written now. ” His too.
To review these wishes on the Ina website, it’s this way.