The former leader of the National Front, now Rassemblement National (RN), in French weekly JDD noted a certain “media absence” of RN deputies, calling on them to “react” by being “aggressive towards the authorities”.
“There is a certain media absence of the RN. Is it voluntary? It is not sure,” said Jean-Marie Le Pen, co-founder of the National Front, in an interview published online on 27 August by the JDD.
“When we refer to the right, we always hear about the Republicans, but never about the RN, which has a larger number of deputies. In politics, it is not enough to exist, you have to make it known. I find them silent. They must react”, he added.
Strategically, the former FN leader explained that these elected representatives would have something to gain by being “aggressive towards the government”.
The 89 RN deputies in the National Assembly have considerable power, he explained. “[Emmanuel Macron] is going to have to face a series of important difficulties during the second [five-year] term. And this is where an opposition formation like the RN can appear as an alternative,” he argued, recalling that “the aim of political action [was] the exercise of power”.
“The leaders who emerged from the legislative elections must be prepared for this. The 89 deputies in the National Assembly are not yet in power, but they are close,” he said. As the campaign to succeed his daughter Marine Le Pen as party leader began, Jean-Marie Le Pen said he would not choose between the two candidates, MEP Jordan Bardella and Perpignan Mayor Louis Aliot. “I will not support anyone. The members will choose. I don’t have a preference,” he insisted.
https://freewestmedia.com/2022/08/30/jean-marie-le-pen-regrets-the-media-absence-of-rn-deputies/