It had been sixty-two years since a Prime Minister had been overthrown by a motion of censure. This Wednesday, December 4, this parenthesis closed. Less than three months after being appointed to Matignon, Michel Barnier fell, victim of a motion of censure tabled by the New Popular Front and voted for by the National Rally. Certainly, if this electric day will remain historic in many respects, in reality its outcome was beyond any doubt.
Although the Prime Minister has given in, in recent days, to several demands from Marine Le Pen by renouncing the reimbursement of medicines and increasing taxes on electricity in 2025, he has not been able to prevent the far right from putting its threat of censorship to execution. And add your voices to those of the left.
By activating article 49-3 of the Constitution to adopt the Social Security Budget, Michel Barnier knew the risk he was taking. But his calls for responsibility, reiterated to the deputies this Wednesday, remained as vain as they dissuaded the opposition from diving head first into the unknown.
Jump into the void
Because that’s what it’s all about: a leap into the void. Not only does the country not have a Social Security budget, but above all it is facing a new political crisis whose leader, from the RN to the NFP, is none other than Emmanuel Macron.
While it took him two and a half months of procrastination to appoint Michel Barnier, he will have to relaunch his quest for the five-legged sheep. In short, identify a personality capable of finding a way through an Assembly that is still fragmented and above all without a majority. From the podium, the one who was still Prime Minister was clear: “This motion of censure will make everything more serious and more difficult.”
“We will bring down any Prime Minister who is not from the NFP”
Still. Throughout this Wednesday, the left recalled that it claimed power. “Emmanuel Macron must appoint a Prime Minister from the NFP,” explains Manuel Bompard, the coordinator of La France insoumise. A demand also made by Boris Vallaud, the PS deputy for Landes. However, nothing says that the Head of State will grant this request, which he has already rejected this summer.
Bayrou, Lecornu ?
In fact, the names circulating to embody the post-Barnier era come mainly from the central bloc. Sébastien Lecornu, the Minister of the Armed Forces is cited again. As does François Bayrou, the mayor of Pau and president of MoDem. “But why would the LR, who had Barnier in Matignon and Retailleau in the Interior, support Bayrou and Lecornu,” we ask within the NFP. As for the Bernard Cazeneuve option, LFI, who advocates for Lucie Castets, also refuses it. The rebels assume it: “We will bring down any Prime Minister who is not from the NFP. »
However, the left is not immune to being divided on the strategy to follow. While the socialist Boris Vallaud defends a “non-censorship” agreement with the other parties – excluding RN -, the rebels are firmly opposed to it as they explain: “This amounts to making an informal coalition with the Macronists. This is the best way to throw away our program. » An opinion that the PS does not share. “We want a left-wing government which renounces 49-3, because it will not have a majority, and which lets Parliament find its balance over the texts,” explains MP Laurent Baumel. “We do not agree on the method with LFI,” he continues, “but the NFP is not a single party. We accept our differences. But we have points of agreement on the economy, social and ecology. »
“If he does not appoint an NFP Prime Minister, the only solution to break this deadlock will be an early presidential election”
As the same political impasse looms as the day after the July legislative elections, LFI intends to maintain pressure on Emmanuel Macron: “If he does not appoint an NFP Prime Minister, the only solution to break this deadlock will be a presidential election. anticipated,” says Manuel Bompard. And the rebels are already moving towards this objective: “We have started to discuss with the banks, with the printers. We also asked our activists to meet the mayors for sponsorships. We are also updating the NFP program. » At the podium of the National Assembly, this Wednesday, Marine Le Pen also designated Emmanuel Macron as the sole responsible for “this chaos”, before promising the imminence of a “great alternation. » This Wednesday evening, the Head of State was able to measure, once again, the relevance of its dissolution. If on June 9 he pressed the button, it was precisely to avoid censorship of the budget…
