Pierre Maudet, the arrogant man at the end of the lake

Pierre Maudet is therefore officially a candidate. Surprising, given his reputation for intelligence and far-sightedness. His candidacy reveals the boundless ambition that has always been his compass. Blinding? The victory of a Latin candidate risks blocking his horizon for a long time, if not forever. The man's in a hurry. Destiny has to be forced. Ambition in itself is eminently desirable and respectable; here, the individual's desire risks harming his community.

For the PLR, this announcement is poison. While it shows that the party has many high-quality personalities, if there were any doubt, it will ultimately give the party a bad image. Maudet will be seen as the killer of Ticinois or the obstacle over which a woman has fallen. All this for a young man endowed with charisma for want of a solid philosophical backbone. A utilitarian through and through. Maudet doesn't sell dreams, he executes them. His life is shaped by the State, he thinks for it. He is the very embodiment of the coldness of the state machine. A brilliant senior civil servant. He prides himself on not being the candidate of any lobby. He forgets all about his corporation, undoubtedly the most voracious.

We like to compare him to the new President of the Republic. Note the similarity of co-optation: Attali for Macron, Couchepin for Maudet. The illusion of youthfulness works wonders, even though both men are products of the structure. But it's easy to forget that, unlike Maudet, Macron knows what it's like to work in the corporate world, that he's driving a real movement behind him and that he loves risk. Maudet, on the other hand, is an authoritarian master. This love of discipline can be seen in his military career - which is apparently still an argument in the 21st century.^th century - his reign over the Geneva PLR, his dossiers for the Conseil d'Etat.

In the end, the worst thing that will remain is that the self-proclaimed candidate of youth understands nothing. to the logic of digital transformation. The Genevan defended tooth and nail an intelligence law which, to put it mildly, endangers the security of citizens, daring to assert that «collective security demands it and it is not dangerous for individual liberties». Yet another member of the «liberal... but» family.

On the other hand, Cassis defends the decriminalization of all drugs. I repeat, all drugs. He exudes warmth, knows what it's like to work in a company, and is fighting to ensure that old-age provision is not excessively made on the backs of the next generation. Being young is in your head, not on your identity card.

Update:

After discussions with the principal and various people close to him, the author would like to make the following clarifications:

• It was in no way intended to call into question the quality of the work carried out by Mr. Maudet in the course of his various mandates - on the contrary. The introduction to the article pays tribute to him. The divergence concerns his profile.

• Regarding his private sector activity, it should have been specified that he «has never held a position of comparable responsibility in the private sector».

• On the subject of the LRens, it makes sense to recall that both Mrs Moret and Mr Cassis supported the same position.

• In view of all his work on the theme of digital change, the judgment above was clearly simplistic and biased. The author of the article acknowledges his misunderstanding and is delighted to see the emergence of a player with such expertise and vision in this field in his country. Geneva's new cab law can serve as an example. 

Link to candidate Pierre Maudet's full program

Write to the author: nicolas.jutzet@leregardlibre.com

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