Hello. I will start with a couple criticism on the article you shared.
A place in the May 2 runoff could prove a cruel prize. If Le Pen beats him [JLM], the anti-capitalist who has spent half a century fighting the far right could help give it what it has never won: the Elysee Palace — and command of France’s nuclear arsenal.
This is very strange. They make it sounds like Jean-Luc Mélenchon it responsibilities for Marine LePen getting close to presidential power. To me, they imply that French people should vote for "more reasonable" candidates instead of the "very radical" JLM. This is a very opinionated sub-text. JLM and LFI are not communiste revolutionaries that want to abolish capital and cease private property. They are just the only progressiste remaining on the political spectrum. JLM is in no way responsible for the raise of Far right fascist ideology in France. Unlike Macron, his successive governments and mass media, that have been extremely complessant with the far right, supporting every day their racist and hateful rhetorics.
His detractors see that as the greater danger. They accuse him of stoking unrest and antisemitism, scorning the police and the press, and going soft on Moscow — charges he rejects.
The rhetoric that LFI are antisemites is pure diffamation coming from political opponents. Simply because LFI are recognizing Israel is committing a genocide in Gaza. This is totally unfounded, and as a fact they didn't receive any sentence in court (as antisemitism is a crime in France), unlike some of their opponents, those very same accusing them !
Now, here is my personal analysis:
- Emanuel Macron is the most hated president in the history of the 5th Republic
- Emanuel Macron has already installed an authoritarian regime in France: he has tarnished every Democrat tradition and denied all democratic processes (§49-3, Convention citoyenne pour le climat, pétitions, legitimate protests)
- he triggered a snap election of the parliament, out of this election come out 1st NFP (union of left including LFI) and 2nd RN (Marin Lepen's Extrem-right)
- he denied both these groups from proposing a prime minister.
- behind closed doors, he makes deals with Marine LePen to place some right-wing prime ministers in power, and categorically refuses to negotiate with the NFP (they are still the first group in parliament)
- he is using police to repress popular protests as brutally as ever
- during his 10 years in office, he has dogmatically only ever implemented ultra-capitalist policies. Giving away Billions of € in public money and tax cuts to big corporations and Billionaires without asking anything in return for the country
- in the meantime he increased retirement age, slash budgets for public health and education, dismantle all public services, asking everyone to work harder and tighten their belt
- all alternatives options have been dismissed without consideration as not realistic or not serious, only he and he alone is right about everything, he doesn't even listen to his own ministers.
France is polarized between 1. far right, people that are racist and totally propagandized 24/7 by TV channels like CNews (equivalent to FoxNews), BFMTV and LCI, and 2. progressive left, people that believe we should do something about the ultra wealthy having too much power and the climate going to shit.