Brigitte Macron, the wife of the French president, is returning to the spotlight. What made her suddenly give an hour and a half radio interview, after remaining fairly discreet during the first part of her husband's term? First and foremost, it should be noted that several of Macron's historic advisors, those who were part of the young guard who had accompanied him for five years, have resigned. These advisors believed that Brigitte Macron had no place in the picture. Not that they had any personal animosity toward her. No. They simply thought that she should not steal the spotlight from her husband. And now, since they have resigned, it has been decided to change the media strategy and take advantage of the empathy that the president's wife enjoys.
Why is the wife of the French president stepping into the spotlight now?
Because Brigitte Macron is loved not only by women over fifty, whose extraordinary romance with her husband Emmanuel arouses sympathy, but also by other segments of the public. After the Yellow Vests crisis , it would be right, according to the president's inner circle, to make his image more sympathetic, more human. And in achieving this goal, his wife's intervention would be effective.
Brigitte Macron herself now feels much more willing to help improve her husband's image than before. She watched with anxiety the difficulties encountered by the wives of the presidents who preceded her husband and was very afraid of harming him. Therefore, she preferred to choose silence. But now the time has come.
Moreover, the Emmanuel-Brigitte couple is extraordinary in its perfection. Such a symbiotic partnership has not been seen at the Élysée Palace since Pompidou – Georges and Claude. Emmanuel and Brigitte complement each other. Everything is done together and this closeness between Emmanuel and his wife explains the success of the radio interview. The one who lives at the Élysée Palace next to her husband remains his most devoted admirer. Political commentators mostly note the sense of sincerity and authenticity that Brigitte conveyed in her words to journalist Marc-Olivier Fougeil, on June 20, over the airwaves of RTL.
And not just talk, but action. Brigitte Macron went to the trouble of traveling to Marseille and Lyon, the two largest cities. Nine months before the local elections, Brigitte is posing for pictures with the mayors. Isn't this a political move? Strengthening cooperation with Jean-Claude Godin, the mayor of Marseille, and repairing relations with Gerard Colon, the mayor of Lyon ? "No and no," denied Brigitte in Lyon, wearing an elegant red dress above the knees and matching high heels. "I have no inclination for politics, but I do have an inclination for my husband."
Say what you will, a few days after she returned from Marseille, the Republican mayor, Jean-Claude Gaudin, announced his support for cooperation with Emmanuel Macron's movement. Brigitte Macron may not be inclined towards politics, but she has influence in the field. The magic works. Her popularity is much greater than her husband's. His media advisors were right when they ordered her to go public.
In a radio interview, she reiterated her unqualified support for her husband and his policies. “In time, history will salute him. I understand the logic by which he acts. I see his work. In the first stage, he analyzes. In the second stage, he synthesizes. In the third stage, he tries to reach the solution.” Her husband’s voice is heard through Brigitte’s words. There is no doubt that the interview was prepared with great care by the couple and their advisors. Everything is under control.
Brigitte Macron's role in shaping her husband's policies
From the very beginning, Brigitte shaped the way the incoming president operated. And even during her term, she influenced various appointments, such as the appointment of the last Interior Minister Christophe Castaner, Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer (she was unable to prevent the dismissal of Culture Minister Françoise Nissen despite her efforts), and criticized her husband's controversial wording.
For example: After Macron declared in Algiers that “colonialism was a crime against humanity,” thereby jeopardizing his chances of being elected, Brigitte burst into the emergency meeting that was held afterwards and told him: “What a stupid nonsense you blurted out, you won’t get to the presidency like that.” Brigitte also didn’t like his offensive sentences, along the lines of “some are successful and some are nothing,” and told him: “That’s how you’ll ruin your mandate.”
Macron won the presidency together with his wife. Hand in hand. The principle of teamwork works for the unusual, modern couple. The most common phrase on Emmanuel's lips during the day is "Where is Brigitte?" Every evening the couple gathers for a short ritual in which Brigitte updates Emmanuel on everything she has heard during the day.
Does she have no inclination for politics? Really? Commentators claim that the opposite is true. And not only that. Historian Jean Grieg states that under the Fifth Republic there was not yet such a political couple as Emmanuel and Brigitte. However, it is clear that despite her influence, she is not the one who decides and there are areas into which she does not enter at all. Brigitte does not interfere, for example, in the details of the reforms and leaves that to the experts.
Not just the wife of the French president
Brigitte Macron feels good at the Elysee Palace and harmoniously combines her life as the president's unofficial political advisor with her roles as a wife, mother, and grandmother. From time to time, she finds time to go out with her husband for intimate meals at a restaurant. And all this is not done at the expense of her family. The mother and grandmother is in close contact with her children and takes care of her grandchildren. Brigitte also does not neglect the traditional role of the president's wife since the Third Republic in caring for sick children and children with special needs.
Because she was a high school teacher for many years, Brigitte Macron knows the education system well, and the attentive teacher has many programs at her disposal to help teenagers succeed in their lives.
Did Brigitte achieve the goal of the macaroni (from the word "macron") to present her husband in a more humane light in the interview she gave? Time will tell.
Around the radio interview given by Brigitte Macron
The article is based mainly on the words of the commentators:
Alix Bouilhaguet
Jean Garrigues
Bruno Jeudy
Nathalie Schuck
In the daily program C dans l'air, which aired on June 22, 2019, on Channel 5.
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