Macron's latest barb against the weak
"Instead of demonstrating and causing chaos the newly unemployed workers of the automotive subcontractor GM&S would do better to start looking for new jobs." With this comment, which comes not long after he said he wouldn't let "loafers" obstruct his reform plans, Emmanuel Macron has once again provoked an indignant response. France's press takes the president to task.
Don't always attack the same target
The president should also try swinging in the other direction, Libération suggests:
“If the president has to put his foot in his mouth, it would be good if from time to time he also berated the rich and powerful. He's never been heard to say that certain bosses overstep the mark, that the CEOs of the companies listed in the [benchmark French stock market index] CAC 40 have an irresponsible tendency to line their own pockets, that some billionaires simply inherited their wealth, and so on. He provokes - why shouldn't he? But strangely enough, when he goes too far he's always transgressing the same limits.”
No better than the presidents before him
Macron is following in the footsteps of his predecessors, L'Opinion writes in disappointment:
“The French expect the head of state to be near to them, but they certainly don't want him to be a normal president. He should listen to them and talk with them, but without resorting to common language. ... Above all his words should not betray class-based disdain or give the impression that he's a rich man's president. Right from the start it seemed clear that having learned much from his predecessors, Emmanuel Macron would be able to avoid the novice's mistakes they committed. Those mistakes included letting disputes about form take precedence over the content of his political message. In such cases the president becomes a mere caricature, and his capacity to act is limited.”