EDITORIAL. How to stop the rise of the RN? The government’s puzzle turns into an obsession

A puzzle that turns into an obsession on the side of the Élysée as well as within the government: how to stop the rise of the extreme right? The RN list for Europeans is at the top of the polls, Marine Le Pen’s image traits are improving in opinion surveys, and in the annual barometer that the Verian Institute (formerly Kantar public) devotes to the RN , published by The world and franceinfo, the party is becoming commonplace and a majority of French people now consider Marine Le Pen, no longer as the representative of a “nationalist and xenophobic extreme right”but of a “patriotic right attached to traditional values”.

For the moment, no reaction from the executive. Flat encephalogram. The government spokesperson, Olivier Véran, will carry the sword in the towns managed by the RN, but the rest of the majority seems paralyzed. For the Europeans, the heavyweights are filing away and Renaissance still has no head of list. The debate revolves around the RN’s favorite subjects, security and immigration. The Lepenist party shamelessly exploits terrorist attacks and news items but remains silent on everything else: global warming, employment, social issues or education. And no tenor tries to flush him out. Marine Le Pen even has the luxury of trying to reassure business circles, without much success so far. In fact, the majority have difficulty changing targets. Obsessed by the slippages and provocations of Jean-Luc Mélenchon, she is struggling to adjust her approach against the RN.

Action to counter

What assets does the majority retain? The action. This is, for example, the watchword of Bruno Le Maire. To beat the far right, he wants to relaunch reforms to make the “fairer and more efficient social model” and achieve the goal of full employment. His colleague and rival Gabriel Attal advocates the same philosophy in matters of Education. He intends to repair “the school elevator” to give middle-class parents hope for a better future for their children. In short, it is about showing that politics can be useful to change daily life. Because ultimately, the progression of the far right remains first and foremost a symptom of the inadequacies of the power in place. Moreover, if in the polls, Marine Le Pen is less frightening, a clear majority of French people still consider that she would not do better than the current government.