The motion of censure proposed by the four groups of the New Popular Front was rejected this Tuesday in the National Assembly, collecting 197 votes, barely expanding the base of 192 deputies signatories of the text, far from the 289 necessary to bring down the government Barnier. None of the 126 RN deputies voted for the mention of censure, thus sealing the alliance of the Macron-Barnier duo with Marine Le Pen.
The RN struggles to hide its support for the Barnier government
The day before, the RN’s speech was already ready to justify keeping Michel Barnier at Matignon. RN spokesperson Laure Lavalette estimated, for example, that “ voting for this motion of censure a priori would not make sense » facing the “ chaotic situation in France “. Same story for RN deputy Julien Odoul: “ We will not support this motion of censure. If it goes in the wrong direction, we will eventually be there to censor. On the other hand, let’s give this government a chance. » In this way, the RN de facto positions itself in Barnier’s camp, guaranteeing its political survival.
Justifying the choice of his party from the platform of the National Assembly, the deputy Guillaume Bigot clumsily sought to defend himself, assuring that censorship would only be postponed ” our group is burning to vote for censorship “, more ” we will only censor actions “. After boasting about the political weight that tacit support for Barnier brings to the RN group, explaining “ we do not censor, because a single tweet from Marine Le Pen is enough to change the position of the Prime Minister », the MP spent most of his speech defending himself and attacking left-wing groups, because he is aware that this alliance with Macron and Barnier will be difficult for his voters to swallow. He thus repeated the rhetoric of the RN on the “single party”, pointing out the convergence which exists from the LR to the PS, in a more hypocritical way than ever while the support of the RN for Barnier represents the main crutch on which the president relies of the Republic in dire straits, incapable all summer of finding a government after its electoral defeats.
Despite these attempts at justification, the RN nevertheless put forward new arguments, which embody the desire of the far-right party to blend into the regime of the Fifth Republic. Throughout his speech, Guillaume Bigot in fact mentioned the “risk of chaos” of “blockage” in the event of the fall of the government, and the “destructive impulses” which drive those who want Barnier to be censored. A way of presenting themselves as guarantors of order and defenders of the stability of institutions, in order to give maximum guarantees of respectability to the bourgeoisie.
In the same sense, if the RN behaves like this, it is also because it negotiated behind the scenes with those in power. The vice-president of the RN Louis Aliot, interviewed this Tuesday morning on TF1, did not hide it: “ We have always said no a priori censorship. We respect a word given by Marine [Le Pen] “. A word given by Marine Le Pen to… Emmanuel Macron himself. Just a few hours after Barnier’s appointment, the leader of the RN already assured, directly to the President of the Republic, that Michel Barnier could calmly await the examination of the upcoming motion of censure, and that his parliamentary group would not would not vote for it.
A promise that Le Pen has since respected to the letter. During her speech to the National Assembly on October 1, following Michel Barnier’s general policy speech, she promised Barnier that his deputies “ will be supports, not obstacles, if you show courage ».
An alliance negotiated by Le Pen to save the regime and gain respectability
But this benevolence does not fail to contrast with the hypocritical verve that the latter has developed since the legislative elections to condemn “ the political class, grouped together in a sort of single party “. However, if the National Rally seeks to present itself as the only opposition and therefore the only alternative to Macron, its numerous signals of goodwill sent to the President of the Republic demonstrate that the party rather acts as a crutch for Macron and the regime. As soon as Michel Barnier was appointed, Le Pen explained himself in the columns of the very Macronist press title The Tribunewhere she stated: “ our wish is not to create a blockage. If we had wanted, we would have done like the New Popular Front and threatened to censor everyone. This is not our state of mind. We want there to be a government, and this government will obviously be under surveillance ».
A position of choice, which allows the RN to gain credibility with the regime and the bourgeoisie. Because if Le Pen forcefully agitates her bill to repeal the pension reform with the aim of satisfying her electoral base, while knowing that it will not pass the Senate barrier, she seeks at the same time to seduce the economic circles by endorsing Barnier’s austerity policy. Always in The Tribuneshe explained thus: “ We are responsible people and are aware that the country can no longer afford to make reckless expenditures in a certain number of areas. “. A line, already perceptible in the new economic program of the RN, filled with gifts to big companies and attacks on workers’ rights, which suggests the same shoddy opposition in the event of a new motion of censure during the vote of the next budget and its passage in force by 49.3.
By rejecting this motion of censure outright, Le Pen offers a semblance of stability to the most fragile government of the Fifth Republic. By pretending to be a good student of the regime, the RN is playing for time and patiently preparing for the next dissolution. During his back-to-school meeting in Nice, Le Pen and Bardella announced the start of a “ permanent campaign ».
If the alliance with Barnier, which could displease his electoral base, entails many risks for the RN, it is particularly dangerous. In addition to shaping a very right-wing government, resolutely anti-poor and anti-migrant, the situation gives the RN the power to bring down the government, and probably lead to a new dissolution, when this is most favorable to it. . The failure of the motion of censure and the totally powerless procedure for impeachment of Macron, which was not even examined in the Assembly after having been refused by the conference of presidents, shows that parliamentary tricks will not be helpful to us. No use in fighting Macron and the far right. A blockage which reminds us, on the contrary, of the urgency of building a response from below to this alliance of reactionaries.
Related News :