France: Bardella accused of antisemitism
Jordan Bardella, the leader of the right-wing populist Rassemblement National, is facing accusations about controversial comments made during his youth. According to the investigative news website Mediapart, he made "obsessively antisemitic" written comments when he was a political activist between 2013 and 2015. The RN's rising star, now 31, denies the allegations and has said he intends to take legal action against the media outlet.
Mudslinging within the party
The revelations highlight just how deep the divides run within the party, columnist Jonathan Bouchet-Petersen comments in Libération:
“Internally, the knives are out between Marine Le Pen's inner circle, which has regained the upper hand since the official announcement of her presidential candidacy, and that of Jordan Bardella. ... It seems that the bond of trust between the party leader and her protégé has been shattered. One thing is certain: should Mediapart's revelations be backed up in the coming days by irrefutable documents, Marine Le Pen will have no choice but to oust the man she has long envisaged as her prime minister for 2027. This is presumably precisely what those who leaked the information to Mediapart were aiming for.”
What counts is what is said today
Mediapart is making too much of the revelations, writes Elisabeth Lévy, editor-in-chief of Causeur:
“It is by no means certain that this anti-fascist farce will fall on fertile ground in the country. For most people – and perhaps for quite a few Jews as well – what matters is what politicians say and do today, not the nonsense they may have talked or thought in the past. The crypto-antisemitic outbursts of today's politicians from the left-wing party La France Insoumise are being taken by many as a free pass to hate Jews, and are far more dangerous than – if you'll pardon the expression – any youthful follies certain people may have committed in the past.”