Macron in front of the European Parliament: what messages did the president convey?

Emmanuel Macron already in the campaign? The Head of State, who has not yet announced his presidential candidacy, took advantage of his speech before the European Parliament in Strasbourg to send very clear signals to his opponents, warning in particular of the danger of not – respect for the rule of law.

“The rule of law is our treasure”

The Head of State has not yet gone into too much detail on all the subjects. He will do so during the question and answer session with the MEPs. He therefore presented the main directions he wishes to give to his presidency. But his speech must necessarily be analyzed in the light of his very likely future candidacy. And Emmanuel Macron did not hesitate to send signals, such as when he warns of the danger of non-compliance with the rule of law.

“The rule of law is our treasure. It is a question everywhere of reconquering the peoples who have moved away from it. It is a question everywhere, with great respect and a spirit of dialogue, of coming to convince again”, he hammered before the European Parliament.

Emmanuel Macron unsurprisingly defended a powerful Europe, already at the heart of his campaign in 2017. The president even goes so far as to speak of European evidence: “I was born in 1977 and my youth was that of European evidence. Our generations today have to rebuild our Europe to live up to its promises of living democracy, progress and peace. We have to rediscover a sense of unity, a taste for the long term. Basically, the need for audacity. Neither the return to nationalism nor the dissolution of our identities will be the answers to this coming world”.

Macron responds to his opponents

Beyond the President’s speech, it was the exercise of questions and answers with the deputies that was closely scrutinized, against the backdrop of the presidential campaign. The Elysée was prepared for it, and the attacks rocketed. “How do you want to believe that you will do in Europe the opposite of what you did in France?”, launched Manon Aubry of France insubordinate.

“You behaved like a liquidator at the head of the French state. For France, but also for Europe, it is vital that your mandate remains unique”, chained Jordan Bardella of the National Rally. At ease in the exercise, Emmanuel Macron in turn tackled the interim president of the RN: “You still, I must salute him, very methodically said anything about all the European texts that we could sign “.

The most striking exchange remains the one with Yannick Jadot. The environmentalist MEP and presidential candidate attacked the head of state head-on: “You will go down in history, Mr. President of the Republic, the president of climate inaction”. But Emmanuel Macron insisted on defending his record on the climate: “France has been at the forefront of this strategy. You cannot deny it because you would be lying”. The Q&A sequence, which lasted more than an hour, looked like the start of an election campaign.