AFP
Legislative: for Raphaël Glucksmann, the union of the left despite everything
“I am not going backwards”: Raphaël Glucksmann supported on Friday the agreement of the New Popular Front sealed the day before despite his deep disagreements with La France insoumise, agreeing to make some concessions on his political line, the one which had the best convinced to the left during the European elections. He is one of those absent from the family photo at the Maison de la Chimie… Olivier Faure, Marine Tondelier, Fabien Roussel, Manuel Bompard, all the leaders of left-wing movements wear a broad smile, confirming a “rupture” agreement supposed to block the far right and represent the alternation of Emmanuel Macron. An absence, certainly, but no distancing. Place Publique, the MEP’s microparty, is represented by the economist Aurore Lalucq, elected to the European Parliament on Sunday like Mr. Glucksmann. And she is satisfied: “We have all made, I think, incredible steps in absolutely record time”, she underlined alongside her counterparts. “The only thing that matters to me is is that the National Rally does not win these legislative elections and does not govern this country”, declared a little earlier on France Inter Raphaël Glucksmann, engaged “in a fight to the death against the extreme right”. “The only way to to do is for there to be a union of the left”, added the essayist, who remained silent in recent days during discussions between the different left-wing groups in view of the anticipated legislative elections to find an agreement, finally sealed on Thursday evening. The negotiations were “an ideological balance of power, it was hard”, said Raphaël Glucksmann, however ensuring that he had obtained the conditions he had set, while rejecting the prospect of seeing Jean-Luc Mélenchon appointed to Matignon.- Voters betrayed? -The leader of Place publique has never hidden his many differences with La France insoumise, particularly on Europe and internationally. He had notably accused the training of Jean-Luc Mélenchon of being at the origin of the anti-Semitic attacks to which he was the subject during the European campaign. The “legislative contract” signed by the left acknowledges certain demands from the MEP: it recognizes an “unprecedented worrying explosion” of “racist, anti-Semitic and Islamophobic acts”, the “Hamas terrorist massacres” committed in Israel on October 7 .On Ukraine, another key point of Mr. Glucksmann’s European program, the New Popular Front is committed to “unfailingly defending the sovereignty and freedom of the Ukrainian people”, in particular by “delivering the necessary weapons” and “the seizure of the assets of the oligarchs who contribute to the Russian war effort. But certain sensitive points, such as nuclear power and NATO, are not mentioned. Nor are possible commitments against the “brutalization of public debate ” which he denounced, clearly targeting rebellious France. With his score of 13.83% in the European elections, the 44-year-old essayist would have in fact wished to “build a social democratic pole” on the basis of his success in the European elections. But the brutal dissolution of the Assembly by Emmanuel Macron, and the threat of the arrival of the far right in power decided otherwise. “I am not going to come to you singing victory,” he admitted. with bitterness, saying they understood that those who voted for him in the European elections “may feel betrayed” by this union with the Insoumis, eight months after the explosion of the Nupes. – He will wet his shirt – His opponents did not deprive themselves to highlight this turnaround. “How can the voters who supported Mr. Glucksmann, who led a truly respectable, dignified campaign, with many strong ideas, support an alliance which, by definition, would propose Jean-Luc Mélenchon as Prime Minister?” questioned Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday. The leader of this union “will not be Jean-Luc Mélenchon”, replied Raphaël Glucksmann on Friday, because “we need a person who creates consensus”, evoking “other figures infinitely more consensual”, such as the rebellious deputy François Ruffin, the socialists Boris Vallaud and Valérie Rabault, or the former leader of the CFDT Laurent Berger. He himself repeated that he would not be a candidate, but assured that a figure will emerge “who will be able to bring together even beyond the Popular Front. He finally promised to “wet his shirt” to support on the ground the environmentalist, socialist, public square or communist candidates… taking care not to mention the Insoumis. caz-ama/sde/sp
