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Populists’ Magic Bag of Tricks, Part 1: Immigration
The art of recycling nauseating ideas and never addressing the root of the problem
On June 9 the Rassemblement National (RN), a far right party, made a breakthrough during the European Elections— not totally surprising but still a painful facepalm moment. Following the dismay of the presidential party, France’s president Emanuel Macron made a moronic decision in dissolving the parliament and calling for legislative elections within 4 weeks, decision that drove the RN into total euphoria and left the other parties oscillating between disbelief and stupor.
Trump, Orban, Meloni, Le Pen, the AFD . . . Far right movements and personalities have been popping up like daisies in recent years. Not only do they win elections, but their success turn mainstream parties and personalities into vulgar plagiarists. Unfortunately, as Jean-Marie Le Pen said in 1991 — and Jean-Marie Le Pen is NOT someone I fancy quoting — “People prefer the original to the copy.” So not only does hunting on the far right’s grounds have a suspicious smell of hypocrisy and opportunism, but it also legitimises ideas that used to be unacceptable.
Chanting “build the wall” until your lungs fall out will never stop migrants from climbing over…
