Macron try to impose a technical government, and calls a Thierry Beaudet,

French Farce goes on: Macron met with a bit of everyone today in his attempt to form a government favorable to him, with a parliament dryly opposed, and, after meeting with Socialists and Sarkozy, he also had talks with what could become his proposal for leading a “Technical” government of national unity: Thierry Beaudet.

The left would not necessarily be more inclined to support Thierry Beaudet, and he criticized arshly the RN in the past. So he doeesn’t seem to be the right person.

Socialist President of Occitania Carole Delga, in favor of appointing a figure like Bernard Cazeneuve, expressed doubts about a “man of quality” but with “no experience” in politics.

“The New Popular Front supports a change of policy, and therefore will support a candidate, a person who is capable of changing policy (…) in this country,” responded leftist alliance candidate Lucie Castets, appearing for the first time to make an opening for a name other than her own.

All these meetings, however, do not seem to have changed the situation, and the NFP , the party that won the last election, albeit with half a trick, does not want to vote either for a socialist imposed by Macron, let alone for a technician. Vuolem its own candidate, or it will not vote for confidence.

France is still at a stalemate.

Cazeneuve received early this morning

Bernard Cazeneuve, the former Socialist prime minister, was the first to be interviewed at 8:45 a.m. this morning, and he was still the favorite, although nothing has been decided nearly two months after the legislative elections, which resulted in a National Assembly without a majority. “Bernard Cazeneuve is not asking for it, but if he does, it is out of duty and to avoid further difficulties for the country,” his entourageexplained Sunday. The Socialist left the Elysee Palace an hour and 15 minutes later, escorted to the entrance by the Head of State, who greeted him with a kiss before getting into his car, AFP reporters noted.

Interior Minister during the 2015 attacks, then Prime Minister in the final months of François Hollande’s five-year term, Bernard Cazeneuve, 61, left the PS in 2022, fiercely opposed to an alliance with LFI within the New Popular Ecological and Social Union (Nupes). This could win him the support of the central bloc, avoiding censure from the right and far right. And his arrival in Matignon could divide the socialists.

LFI coordinator Manuel Bompard reassured Sunday that “Bernard Cazeneuve is not supported by any of the four left-wing parties in the country” and reiterated his willingness to criticize “any government other than that of Lucie Castets.” “I will not give him a chance. He belongs to the old world of Dutchism, whose page we want to turn,” Mathilde Panot, leader of LFI deputies, reiterated Monday on France 2.

“What guarantees does Bernard Cazeneuve have, if not that he is actually a prisoner of a majority, of a coalition, that of Emmanuel Macron (…) even though he has not obtained or even sought the support of the Popular Front, ” pointed out Olivier Faure, First Secretary of the PS, on BFMTV/RMC.

As a reminder, Emmanuel Macron, who could make this appointment as early as Tuesday, is looking for a prime minister who is not subject to immediate censure by the National Assembly. That is why he ruled out the nomination of Lucie Castets, proposed by the formations of the New Popular Front (LFI-PS-Écologistes-PCF), the leftist alliance that won the last legislative elections. But the President of the Republic also wants the central bloc to be part of the future majority. “We have to invent a third form of the Fifth Republic: neither coalition nor cohabitation,” according to his entourage, which speaks of “coalition,” a term that mixes the two words.

Hollande and Sarkozy were also received

Received at 11 a.m., François Hollande undoubtedly did not dissuade Emmanuel Macron from nominating Bernard Cazeneuve, unlike Nicolas Sarkozy, who was expected at the rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré at 12:15 p.m. and whose meeting with the Head of State lasted a good hour. The former president wants a “right-wing prime minister” and believes Xavier Bertrand would be “a good choice,” who arrived at the Elysee Palace at 3:30 p.m. for talks with Emmanuel Macron.
The 59-year-old president of Hauts-de-France, who has made no secret of his interest in the position, will succeed Bertrand in Emmanuel Macron’s office. However, the Républicains, led by Laurent Wauquiez, who wish to enter as opponents in the 2027 presidential elections and reject any coalition or involvement in the future government, do not support this advocate of a Gaullist and social right. The same goes for the RN. MP Jean-Philippe Tanguy criticized the two candidates on TF1 on Monday, saying that Bernard Cazeneuve and Xavier Bertrand “are more or less defrauded Macronists” and that his party would “without a doubt” censure the next government when it comes to voting on the 2025 budget.
Centrist François Bayrou, followed by Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, who resigned 48 days ago, were also invited to express their views.

Finding a balance

Emmanuel Macron and his future prime minister must also agree on the terms of their agreement, which must not be “a confrontational cohabitation” but a “co-responsibility,” according to Modem leader François Bayrou. A “coalition,” ventures one of the presidential entourage, using a neologism that mixes the words cohabitation and coalition.

The unpopular reform on retirement at 64 will be one of the most difficult issues to tackle, as Emmanuel Macron fears that his record will be dismantled. Why not a “freeze” on the reform and new discussions with the unions, rather than outright repeal, suggested PS MP Jérôme Guedj on Sunday.

The pressure of the next budget

However, time is running out for a new government, as the 2025 budget must be submitted to Parliament by October 1. On August 20, in order to “ensure the continuity of the state,” Prime Minister Gabriel Attal indicated to the resigning ministers the limits of their ministries’ allocations for 2025 in “maximum letters” so that they could begin preparing their budgets.

Taking all ministries together, these financial envelopes reproduce, to the nearest euro for 2025, spending for 2024 (492 billion euros). According to Matignon, this would generate savings of about 10 billion euros, just by not indexing them to expected inflation of about 2 percent next year. And this level of spending is “reversible,” Gabriel Attal explained, as the new government will be able to adjust it as it sees fit before the 2025 budget submission deadline.

One ministry has already gnashed its teeth after these ‘roof letters’ were sent . It is the Ministry for Ecological Transition, headed by Christophe Béchu. As part of the ‘ceiling letters’ intended for the preparation of the next budget, “ there is no agreement or support from the minister on the savings required for the 2025 budget law , ” a member of the minister’s cabinet told AFP on Saturday.
According to the Contexte news outlet , a cut of 1.5 billion euros is planned for the Green Fund and 1 billion euros is expected to be withdrawn from the vehicle electrification component. In addition, the budget of the French Agency for Ecological Transition (Ademe), which is dedicated to local authorities and businesses, will be cut from 1.373 billion euros to 900 million euros, which could slow down projects for renewable heat development and waste prevention.