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PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron and far-right candidate Marine Le Pen exchanged fierce criticism of each other’s proposals on Wednesday and faced off in their only campaign debate ahead of the crucial second round of voting in four days.
The state of France’s economy and the aftermath of the war in Ukraine took center stage, with Macron implying that his opponent was committed to Russian interests, describing her as “dependent” on Russia and President Vladimir Putin.
“You talk to your banker when you talk about Russia,” he said, referring to the fact that Le Pen’s 2017 election campaign was funded in part by a loan from a Russian bank brokered by a Putin ally, according to French investigative agency Mediapart . Le Pen has also expressed admiration for Putin in the past.
“I am an absolutely and totally free woman,” Le Pen replied.
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Le Pen, 53, has slipped slightly in the polls in recent days and is about eight percentage points behind Macron. But the race remains far more uncertain than five years ago, when she lost to Macron by more than 30 percentage points. Wednesday’s debate is the last major opportunity for the far-right leader to portray herself as more moderate and presidential than she was five years ago.
Le Pen had a widely viewed hurtful experience in her debate against Macron in 2017, when she appeared ill-prepared and lost her temper.
But on Wednesday she appeared more relaxed, even as the highly planned and well-timed debate got off to a false start: Le Pen began speaking while the opening music was still playing. She shrugged off the fumbling with a laugh and opened by promising to be the president of “justice,” “national brotherhood,” and “the nation’s restored harmony.”
In her opening speech, Le Pen emphasized what was the central argument of her campaign: that she was closer to the concerns of the French than Macron.
“I know our people well,” she said, “and for the past five years I’ve seen them suffer and worry.”
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The format proved more challenging for Macron this time, as his position as incumbent drew more criticism than five years ago.
In his opening remarks, Macron seemed eager to defend his track record against Le Pen’s criticism. “We have all gone through a difficult time together – unprecedented crises, a pandemic on a scale not seen in a century and today the return of war to European soil,” Macron said. “Thanks to the trust placed in me, I’ve been through this period as head of state trying to make the right decisions. And I want to keep doing that.”
Macron then highlighted his track record in the economy and spoke of the need to make France “more innovative and stronger” and more active on climate change – an issue that resonates with left-wing voters who choose to vote one of them supporting or abstaining could tip the election.
The 2 1/2 hour debate was heavily focused on the French economy, a dominant issue in the election. Although France’s economy has emerged from the pandemic more resilient than some of its neighbors, Le Pen’s campaign has gained momentum by reflecting sentiment that economic growth has not benefited most citizens. Existing concerns about rising inflation, energy prices and the cost of living were compounded by the impact of the war in Ukraine.
“The ‘Mozart of finance’ has a very bad record on the economy and an even worse record on social issues,” Le Pen said, referring to a nickname for Macron, who was a former Rothschild investment banker.
Macron, 44, has proposed extending some of his current policies, including a cap on electricity and natural gas prices introduced last year. He has also promised additional tax cuts and more green energy spending if he wins a second five-year term. Macron believes his proposals are more realistic than Le Pen’s. The far-right leader wants to eliminate income taxes for everyone under 30, reduce taxes on energy and many basic goods, and send the government on a spending spree.
Proposed changes to France’s retirement age were also examined during Wednesday’s debate. While Macron has suggested raising it from 62 to 64 or 65, Le Pen wants to keep the current age and lower it for some workers.
“Retiring at 65 is an unbearable injustice,” Le Pen said.
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The teams of candidates had haggled with the broadcasters responsible for the debate, under the supervision of the French communications regulator, down to the last detail – from the temperature in the room to the lighting and the size of the table. Le Pen and Macron should discuss eight major issues Starting with people’s purchasing power, followed by international politics, France’s social model, the environment, competitiveness, youth, security and immigration, and institutions.
French President Emmanuel Macron is attempting to stave off a victory for far-right candidate Marine Le Pen in the April 24 presidential election. (Video: James Cornsilk, Rick Noack, Alexa Juliana Ard/The Washington Post, Photo: Jackie Lay/The Washington Post)
Le Pen’s biggest weakness on Wednesday may be her radical anti-immigration proposals to be discussed towards the end of the debate, which have long curtailed her party’s chances of winning over more moderate or left-wing voters. Macron has also been criticized for shifting to the right on immigration in recent years. But in recent rallies and interviews, Macron has called Le Pen’s platform “racist” and said its proposals – which include a referendum on immigration and preferential treatment for the French – would eventually force France to leave the European Union.
He doubled down on those criticisms on Wednesday. “When you put your project back together brick by brick, it’s a project about getting out of the EU, even if it doesn’t say so explicitly,” he said.
Foreign policy played a greater role in Wednesday’s TV duel than in previous presidential debates. The war in Ukraine initially played a major role in the early stages of the French campaign, before domestic issues once again came to the fore of public debate. But questions about Le Pen’s past admiration for Putin, her ties to Russia, and her criticism of NATO and the EU resurfaced in the debate.
Le Pen wanted to position herself as a strong supporter of Ukraine from the start on Wednesday, declaring her “solidarity and absolute sympathy for the Ukrainian people”. But she said she remains opposed to banning Russian oil and gas in response to the war, arguing it would hurt the French more than Russia. Macron has expressed support for an EU-wide embargo on Russian oil and coal, but not gas.
A lengthy Twitter thread was posted on the detainee’s account on Wednesday Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny urged the French to vote for Macron and accused Le Pen of corruption.
Macron’s strategy for entering the debate was probably to “show her limitations and return to her past – her family history, but also her political past – proximity to Putin and to illiberal democracies like Poland or Hungary,” said Alexis Lévrier, a Media representative historian at the University of Reims.
Le Pen’s election campaign this year was funded in part by a loan from a Hungarian bank with ties to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
Particularly among older French voters, Le Pen’s party also remains linked to its founder – and Le Pen’s father – Jean Marie Le Pen, who described the Nazi gas chambers as only a “detail” of World War II. His daughter changed the party’s name and transformed the organization from a toxic fringe movement, but the party’s past still looms past the runoff five years ago.
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For most of the election campaign, Le Pen’s story and her earlier statements about Putin played a minor role – partly because she threatened to be outstripped by far-right candidate Éric Zemmour, who in many ways appeared even more radical than she.
Without Zemmour in attendance, Le Pen’s foreign policy proposals – including her recent comments that NATO should reconcile with Russia after the war in Ukraine – could come under closer scrutiny.
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But a heavy focus on the war in Ukraine on Wednesday night could also pose risks for Macron, whose efforts at jet-setting diplomacy and continued talks with Putin have yielded few results so far.
“I think the risk for Emmanuel Macron will be arrogance,” Lévrier said. “There is a section of the public that obviously hates Marine Le Pen but is also suspicious of Emmanuel Macron.
“For him, the worst mistake would be to once again present the image of someone who despises and brushes aside their opponent,” he said.
Timsit reported from London.