LR Congress: "What if it was Ciotti?"

David Desgouilles is a columnist at Marianne. He has published Dérapage (ed. du Rocher, 2017) and Their Lost Wars, (ed. du Rocher, 2019).

FIGAROVOX. - What did you think of the tone of the exchanges during the LR debate which took place on Monday, November 8?

David DESGOUILLES. - We felt that none of the protagonists wanted to be reproached for having shown aggression towards one of their competitors. The candidates therefore gave pledges of camaraderie throughout the debate, all called each other by their first names, in order to reinforce the effect of proximity. In the end, the only moments of mutual annoyance were between the candidates and the journalists.

In this regard, I note that the latter, obsessed with what is happening on the other side of the Atlantic, wanted to animate the debate "American style", repressing what they considered to be irrelevant, sometimes even giving their opinion through their questions, an opinion which it is quite possible that the members summoned to the LR congress could not care less about. But at least Ruth Elkrief's shrugs had a merit: to disturb the hum of this debate and allow us to stay awake until the end.

Which candidate stood out the most during the debate, in your opinion?

Unquestionably, it is Eric Ciotti, and to a lesser degree Philippe Juvin. It is often moreover often the “small thumbs” who seek to push their advantage in this kind of confrontation, the favorites wishing to remain cautious, because they have much more to lose. Thus five years ago, it was Jean-Frédéric Poisson who had rather been to his advantage, which moreover had not been profitable to him as regards his score at the polls.

To read also Maxime Tandonnet: "Would the debate of ideas once again become a priority at LR?"

Éric Ciotti stood out from his competitors insofar as he was the only one to position himself as close to Eric Zemmour. He emphasized Zemmourian themes from his introduction and was the only one not to condemn the editorialist-almost-candidate. As for Philippe Juvin, he stood out more on the issue of public spending, sometimes trying to get out of the debate between accountants which dominated for a good part of the show.

On economic issues, Xavier Bertrand has displayed a more social line than his competitors... Is this a good strategy?

He appeared more social than Valérie Pécresse and Éric Ciotti, of course, but perhaps not as much as Michel Barnier and even more so than Philippe Juvin. Xavier Bertrand has also tried to stick to the latter on the theme of the hospital, indeed. It seems to me that this strategy is not unfounded, insofar as the electorate of the LR congress is characterized by a very high average age, that is to say a population generally more likely to attend the hospital environment.

On the other hand, Xavier Bertrand knows that it is necessary to take back part of the third age from Emmanuel Macron if he is appointed by Congress. He was thus killing two birds with one stone. But overall, he didn't really stand out from his competitors, who like him are all concerned with bringing the net salary closer to the gross salary. “Lower the charges” was the leitmotif of the evening. This is a very old song in this party.

The questions of the European Union and sovereignty were little discussed. Do you regret it?

Apart from Éric Ciotti in his introduction, which was the most specific in terms of the proposal to recover legal sovereignty, these questions have in fact been little addressed. Insofar as the President of the Republic must in the first place embody national sovereignty and popular sovereignty, I can indeed only regret it.

A large number of proposals detailed by the candidates depend in fact on the European context and on the ability of the future government to extract itself from the legal and economic framework in which our country is trying with difficulty to operate. I note despite everything that none indicated that his first trip as president-elect would be to Germany. A mischievous spirit whispered to me last night that Xavier Bertrand had already been there last July and had declared his love for the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle signed by Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel. Perhaps it is for this reason that Xavier Bertrand made a point of specifying that there was no question of sharing the seat of the Security Council of France with Berlin or Brussels. After his statements in July on this treaty, this was by no means obvious…