The image of unity has crumpled up a bit.
After the beautiful poster of the six candidates for Congress gathered Tuesday at the headquarters of the Republicans, the campaign for the LR nomination for the 2022 presidential election was marked this week by some friction.
In particular because of certain leaks, which were immediately analyzed by some as unmanned attacks.
Read also Presidential 2022: Republicans display their unity before the December 4 congress
According to France Info, Michel Barnier would indeed not have settled his membership in the party in 2019. On reading the file of LR members of December 31, 2019, "
a flaw in the story of Michel Barnier
" would appear, since on the list of 184,090 names listed, his would be followed by the mention "
member not up to date
" and that his "
last contribution
" would date from "
June 8, 2018
". In the continuation, the testimony of a "
high executive of LREM
" is evoked, questioning "
the loyalty that Barnier proclaims towards his party
" and affirming that "
he was ready to join (the majority) and he was very greedy ...
""
It is because we did not want to give him the head of the list (at the Europeans of 2019) that he returned to LR,
”the same source assures us, on condition of anonymity.
Finally, the article underlines that the “
consistency claimed
” by the candidate within his political family is “
one of the main reasons for his popularity among militants
”.
Before recalling the results of an editorial survey, carried out among the presidencies of LR federations, having recently confirmed its position as favorite in the internal ballot scheduled for December 4.
"A rather funny little controversy"
On France Bleu Alsace this Friday, the former Brexit negotiator immediately replied, pointing to "
a small controversy which is quite funny at the bottom and which proves the nervousness of a certain number of people
". As for his supposed proximity to Emmanuel Macron's European project, the suitor took the opportunity to slip a message to his opponents. "
I have clearly given my support - which has not been the case with all the people who are in the debate today - for my party's list in the European elections,
" he declared.
The candidate's entourage completes by referring to a letter of September 28, 2018 addressed to Joseph Daul, then president of the European People's Party (EPP), a majority center-right group in the Parliament of Brussels.
"
Dear Joseph, I wish to inform you personally of my decision not to present my candidacy for the EPP congress ... to lead the campaign of our political family for the European elections
".
Engaged behind the candidacy of François-Xavier Bellamy (LR), Michel Barnier then declared, a few months later: “
I have been a member of the Republicans and of the Gaullist family since I was 15 years old.
I am loyal to this party.
"
Read alsoPresidential: the countdown has begun before the Congress of Republicans
Thursday, Daniel Fasquelle - in charge of support within Michel Barnier's team - also defended the loyalty of his champion.
"
Michel Barnier paid his LR contributions in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021. A simple oversight in 2019, while he supported François-Xavier Bellamy (to the Europeans) ... his loyalty is indisputable
", insisted the one who is also the treasurer of the Republicans.
In the light of the particularly “
captivating
”
context
of Brexit and the European People's Party (EPP), in which Michel Barnier was involved, Daniel Fasquelle considers these attacks “
pathetic
”.
"Avoid smoking and cheap shots"
He also recalls that, in recent years, the LR party has abandoned paper reminders for reasons of savings. Finally, if the 2019 contribution can be singled out, the mayor of Le Touquet specifies that, until 2020, a member had a period of one year, in addition to the contribution year, before no longer be considered as a member. "
Moreover, to no longer be a member of the Republicans, you must either be sanctioned, or have announced your resignation yourself, as was the case for some
", one specifies.
In Michel Barnier's teams, where we wonder about the source circulating these files of members, we expected the emergence of the controversy even before it was put in the public place.
“
All this shows that the candidacy of Michel (Barnier) is starting to cause fear.
He was attacked by stink balls coming from LR where some probably feel in an uncomfortable position but the attacks also come from LREM because the macronists are also agitated, it is undeniable ”,
analyzes a close friend of the former minister.
To read also Michel Barnier, the little music of Joe Biden of the right
While relativizing the scope of the attacks, Camp Barnier nevertheless pleads for the continuation of a "
dignified and clear
"
campaign
.
“
Some do not seem to want to play the game but if the right wants to win in April, they must avoid the smoke and the low blows. They have no place in this campaign. And if this were to continue, Michel (Barnier) will set things straight,
”we warn.
The first burst observed came out of the mouth of Laurence Sailliet on CNews, Monday, October 15.
"
Pardon me to tell you, in ten years of Political Bureau, I have never seen Michel Barnier, moreover I am not even sure that he has been a member for the last ten years
", then declared the ex-spokesperson for the Republicans, who became a media columnist.
According to
Challenges
, Laurence Sailliet "
should join Xavier Bertrand's team
" and put an end to her activities on the news channel in December.
The interested party denied this information, saying that no journalist had called her to verify it.
