François Bayrou warned Emmanuel Macron on Sunday against any attempt to force through the pension reform, Edouard Philippe on the contrary assures the executive of his support, whatever happens. Why so much dissonance in the majority? Renaud Dély’s editorial.
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No doubt: we have entered a new period, post-Macron. It may seem a little early, the Head of State was re-elected barely 5 months ago for a second term, an unprecedented feat by universal suffrage excluding cohabitation. Yet this is what runs through the minds of several pillars of the majority: heading for 2027!
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Not sure that François Bayrou is himself a new candidate, he is 71 years old, the age of Jean-Luc Mélenchon. But until then, the boss of the Modem wants to weigh heavily. In a context of strong social tensions, the centrist leader wants to create a link of dialogue, to overcome the deep divisions of the country. This is the role incumbent on the National Council for Refoundation, of which it has taken the reins. A pension reform imposed hastily by 49-3 and against all the unions would seal the end of the CNR – the CFDT would slam the door – and undoubtedly the end of the political influence of François Bayrou.
So why did Edouard Philippe make the opposite choice? The former Prime Minister sees it as an opportunity to refine his image as a reformer. Edouard Philippe is a fervent supporter of the postponement of the legal retirement age, he had integrated the famous pivotal age of 64 in the aborted project of 2020. And he does not believe in the success of the CNR any more than he does believed in the success of the great debate after the crisis of “yellow vests”. He wants a real pension reform and puts pressure on the Head of State to act quickly and strongly. And if Emmanuel Macron backs down, Edouard Philippe will be able to appeal to the right-wing electorate in view of 2027, since he has set up on his own, with his party, Horizons, and his group in the Assembly.
And that’s why he started on his own, with his party, Horizons, and his group in the Assembly. Initially, Emmanuel Macron dreamed of a large single party of the majority. But individual ambitions therefore dashed his hopes. Not to mention those of Bruno Le Maire, Gérald Darmanin and perhaps a few others who are also preparing for 2027, but inside Renaissance, the new majority party of which MEP Stéphane Séjourné took the lead this weekend. . François Bayrou has often repeated that it was as difficult to bring the centrists together as keeping frogs in a wheelbarrow. By 2027, it will not be easier with the macronists…