A pro-European president for France

Anne MACEY Confrontations Europe’s CEO [vc_btn title= »Download article » style= »outline » color= »primary » align= »right » i_icon_fontawesome= »fa fa-file-pdf-o » add_icon= »true » link= »url:http%3A%2F%2Fconfrontations.org%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2017%2F05%2FA-pro-European-president-for-France.pdf||target:%20_blank| »] A pro-European president for France   Reformist, pro-European leader Emmanuel Macron beat far-right leader Marine Le Pen with 66% of votes in the French presidential elections on 7 May. Voters had a stark choice to make between two radically different visions of France and its place in the world: reinvigoration of the French economy and the European project versus France’s removal from the euro, protectionism and drastically curbed immigration. Despite growing populism, 39-year-old Macron appealed to people’s hopes, not fears, and won. Although Brussels has been a scapegoat in recent decades, Macron was unabashedly pro-European in his campaign. He intends to reform France for itself, not for either Brussels or Ms Merkel, even though Le Pen tried to portray him as “Ms Merkel’s Vice-Chancellor” or as an agent of financial globalization. In a world of profound