In a conference at the Brussels City Hall in front of around 150 people – anonymous people and personalities including the Minister of Pensions Karine Lalieux (PS) -, the former French President François Hollande developed some of the analyzes he carries in his last book Upheavals, to understand the new global situation, at Stock. Prefaced by host Philippe Close and moderated by Hakima Darmouche, the conference logically focused on the war in Ukraine, the role of Europe and the United States, but also on the situation in France, the impact of extreme right in France and in Europe or the Gafam.
The socialist expressed concern that if the far right reached the second round in the next presidential elections, it would “no longer be scary enough to justify a blocking vote. And that is the main threat.” According to him, the only way to counter such an eventuality is through the reconstruction of the country’s two main political parties. “The extreme right mainly feeds on the weakness of the major parties”. The outcome is to “reconstitute the two great political families – the right, the left – which can appear in a presidential election to be in the second round, one and the other.”
Pension reform: Emmanuel Macron’s two fatal mistakes
On the pension reform, François Hollande pointed out Emmanuel Macron’s two major errors. “To succeed in carrying out a pension reform, there are preconditions. The first condition is to discuss with the trade unions. In France, for once, we are lucky to have the CFDT as the main trade union organization; with Laurent Berger, who leads the social movement today. The first condition would have been to discuss with Laurent Berger, to negotiate with the trade unions, to find a compromise if possible, in any case progress, concessions. It has not been done.”
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“The government preferred to make a political agreement with the LRs (the French right, in favor of postponing the retirement age, editor’s note) to push through its reform. Except that this party is no longer led, has not even been able to bring its votes to the National Assembly. In a way, it’s an acknowledgment of failure. A failure in social negotiation, a failure in parliament. So… I would not like to be the President of the Republic today.”
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What exit door, therefore, for Emmanuel Macron? “He only has the choice between bad solutions. Either he withdraws the project when it has been voted on. There is a precedent, Jacques Chirac had promulgated a text saying that it would not be applied. Either he is good. But for how long? With what incidents? What bitterness in society, what resentment? And what next for the five-year term? To a particularly attentive Karine Lalieux: “don’t do like Emmanuel Macron…”
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“Elon Musk is worse than Vladimir Putin”
François Hollande’s book also deals with the issue of Gafam. The opportunity for the socialist to discuss his meeting with Elon Musk, whom he fears more than Vladimir Putin. “There are two people I met who scared me: Vladimir Putin and Elon Musk. Putin, we can try to contain him, to push him away. We know how to do it. But Elon Musk… He has a vision of humanity totally foreign to our values. He thinks he can build another humanity thanks to science, technology, etc.”, narrates the former French president who met the American billionaire in 2014 on the advice of his team – “you are a socialist, you have to that you are modern. You have to go to Silicon Valley. So, to be modern, I’m going to go see Elon Musk…”
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”When I met Elon Musk in 2014, he told me about a trip he was going to organize on the planet Mars. People who talk to me about Mars travel plans can be seen as not quite balanced people. He also talks to me about the construction of an individual who could push back all the limits, including the final deadline, to live transhumanism. It is a totally Promethean project. We’re going to build a new home, we’re going to live on another planet… There, I worried you a lot by telling you that Elon Musk is worse than Vladimir Poutine…” Thank you for this moment
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Emmanuel Macron and François Hollande both slept in Brussels last night
Chance of the calendar, François Hollande and Emmanuel Macron were both in Brussels between Thursday and Friday. The first for its conference, the second within the framework of the European summit. However, they did not meet. Hakima Darmouche, who moderated the public conversation, asked him if he had had the opportunity to meet Emmanuel Macron. “I’ll tell you more tonight,” teased the socialist. He knew, however, that they would not meet. At his request, François Hollande was accommodated in a different hotel. Emmanuel Macron spent the night at theAmigoFrançois Hollande slept at Julianaa 5-star hotel located on the Place des Martyrs.
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