The former President of the Republic has always advocated, defended, and extolled the imperative unity of the PS. A defender of social democracy, François Hollande would nevertheless prefer to govern with LFI rather than in the center, underlines our columnist Michel Winock.
François Hollande, in his work, The Challenge of Governing. The Left and Power from the Dreyfus Affair to the Present Day (Perrin), offers us a great opportunity to reflect on French political life, and particularly on the strengths and weaknesses of the left. Far from denying “that there are two lefts”, the former first secretary of the PS lists the historical duelists: Jaurès and Guesde, Blum and Thorez, Mitterrand and Marchais, Jospin and Chevènement, “and finally Mélenchon and myself”.
His hopes lead him towards the formation of a social-democratic government, but, to achieve this, rejecting the alliance with the center, he does not conceive of its realization other than by the unity of the left, following the example of François Mitterrand. Unlike Michel Rocard, for whom it was necessary to separate the reformist tendency from the pseudo-revolutionary radical tendency, even if it meant assuming a split that would have the merit of setting a clear and distinct line for the socialist party, François Hollande has always advocated, defended, exalted the imperative unity of his party – the dream of a man of good will.
a New Popular Front MP
In April 2008, the PS decided to publish a Statement of Principles which intended to define its nature and goals unambiguously. It read that “the Socialist Party is a reformist party”. An admission, a return to reality, which suggested a mini French “Godesberg” (the German Congress of 1959 which saw the SPD break with Marxism). “The socialists are in favour of a social and economic market economy, a market economy regulated by the public authorities as well as by the social partners. The system wanted by the socialists is a mixed economy, combining a dynamic private sector, quality public services, and a third sector of social economy.”
In other words, it was no longer a question of breaking with capitalism, as was proclaimed at the Epinay Congress of 1971, but of accepting the c[…]
- challenges.fr
Also read
Related News :