Political obituaries
In Brussels, some EU diplomats are already privately writing Macron’s political obituary. Having shot to power in 2017 and broken the mold of French politics, they said, he now appears a lame duck leader whose influence in Brussels is fading fast.
A second EU diplomat spoke of Macron’s “legacy” as a powerful thinker who had generated many ideas to drive change in Europe, and who had persuaded other leaders to embrace some of them. The concept of “strategic autonomy” — making the EU more self-sufficient economically and in defense — was born years ago in Paris, the diplomat noted.
With President Trump now pulling the U.S. away from Europe, it’s an idea that has come of age in Brussels. “Not many leaders are willing and able to think five or even two years ahead,” the diplomat said. “He was so good at doing that.”
Macron, of course, was elected to be in office until 2027, and despite speculation has given no indication he will resign. If he stays, however, the turmoil in Paris means French influence on EU debates and policy development is likely to be diminished.
Discussions among finance ministers on the EU budget would be much easier for France to shape, for example, if it could consistently send the same minister to meetings with their counterparts in Brussels, the diplomat said. But the repeated personnel shakeups in Paris make it far harder for the French position to hold sway.
An early election, on the other hand, could imperil the EU’s next long-term budget. National governments discussing the budget had set an informal deadline to get a deal before the French election in 2027, given the danger that Le Pen might politicize and ultimately derail the debate, said the eurozone government official quoted above.
Politico |
