The three little pigs

Le Regard Libre No. 24 – Jonas Follonier

On January 29, Benoît Hamon was selected as the Socialist Party’s candidate for the French presidency, finishing well ahead of his opponent, Manuel Valls. This event shows that not all those nostalgic for a far-left wing have left the French Socialist Party to join Jean-Luc Mélenchon or Marine Le Pen. They are also found within the party itself. They are known as the “rebels.” And this election shows us that they constitute the majority within their own camp.

This choice by Socialist activists is questionable. Manuel Valls, despite all his flaws, embodied the convergence of two tendencies: a certain degree of liberalism on economic issues and a very firm stance on republican values. In short, just like Hollande, Valls seems to view today’s reality for what it is. Meanwhile, Benoît Hamon thinks he’s being modern by promising a universal basic income.

This proposal, aside from being outdated and having a philosophical dimension that devalues the very idea of work and merit, reveals its full absurdity when one looks at the numbers. France is a country up to its neck in debt, with a huge number of unemployed people, it has the most generous social welfare system in Europe—and now the government is supposed to spend an additional 400 billion on top of all existing benefits to give everyone, without exception, a monthly cash payment? This idea seems crazy.

That said, Hamon did not emerge as the clear winner of the Citizens’ Primary. The two real winners are Mélenchon and Macron: in the first round of the presidential election, left-leaning voters will be able to choose, depending on their political leanings, a candidate who is more liberal than Hamon (Macron) or even less liberal than Hamon (Mélenchon). And, importantly, these two independent candidates are taking a much more compelling and less lukewarm stance on issues such as Europe, culture, and terrorism.

This year, the French left will therefore be represented by candidates whose names end in «on»: Mélenchon, Hamon, and Macron. We’ll see which of the three little pigs can stand up to the she-wolf and Fillon.

Write to the author: jonas.follonier@leregardlibre.com

Cover image: Benoît Hamon, Socialist candidate for President of the French Republic (Source: Wikimedia 4.0)