A poaching that doesn't pass. "Politics is not Star Academy," criticised LR boss Éric Ciotti on Monday evening on TF1, "shocked" by the entry into government of Rachida Dati, from his party. "She left our political family. Of course, I won't tell you tonight that it didn't affect me. Especially since she's a friend. It hurt us," the leader of the right-wing party reacted in the 20 p.m. news.
➡️ Rachida Dati's exclusion from the LR after her entry into the government"For me, politics is not Star Academy, you can't be LR and a member of the government
🗣️," said the president of the @lesRepublicains party, @ECiotti, invited to #LE20H of @GillesBouleau pic.twitter.com/l8TJxVDAdo
— TF1Info (@TF1Info) January 15, 2024
"I found this choice inconsistent with staying in our political family," continued Éric Ciotti, who immediately announced the exclusion of Rachida Dati from LR after her appointment last Thursday.
Read alsoLR shocked by Rachida Dati's poaching: "We are forced to fire her, but it weakens us even more"
"You can't be outside and inside. I was elected, we were elected on an opposition mandate, not for systematic opposition, but to serve convictions, values. For me, politics isn't Star Academy, it's not about going in, it's about going out. We can espouse all theses, all convictions," he told TF1.
"Our voters can't find their way around anymore"
"For me, politics must be about clarity, coherence. And this consistency is essential. Otherwise, our constituents are confused. You can't be LR and be a member of a government that you oppose because its record is not good," he concluded.
Earlier in the day, Nicolas Sarkozy's former Minister of Justice had already had a run-in with a former colleague from the Republicans: François Baroin. The latter, considering that Rachida Dati's entry into the Attal government was "a lack of lucidity", was entitled to a very curt response from the new Minister of Culture on X.
François Baroin is an heir who has done nothing in his life other than enjoy the protections he has received. And that at decisive moments has slipped away, both for our political family and for the country. His words are undignified. I don't need to be lectured. https://t.co/JmnGiAr85u
— Rachida Dati ن (@datirachida) January 15, 2024
Sarkozy's Rachida Dati, mayor of the 7th arrondissement of Paris, was appointed culture minister on Thursday, two years before the municipal elections in which she aims to conquer Paris.