President Macron, who is blamed for the crisis by most French voters, has seen his popularity ratings slump to just 14%. He has been in office for eight years, and the far right and far left have called for his resignation before his second term ends in 18 months.
According to his one-time adviser, the veteran essayist and confidant of presidents Alain Minc, Macron “must now go down as the worst president of the Fifth Republic”.
Minc said Macron had come to office promising to act as a bulwark against the far right but he had left National Rally at the gates of power.
“If you look around us,” said Minc, “the Germans are petrified about what a French collapse will do to the economy. The British are petrified about the strategic implications. The Italians are laughing at us, because we always laughed at them.”
“In America, President Trump is saying that smooth-talker Macron has got what he deserves. Only in Russia are they smiling.”