One meeting can hide another. Monday, February 14, when all eyes were on Valérie Pécresse’s “strategic committee”, the day after his controversial meeting at the Zenith in Paris, another conclave discreetly improvised in the office of the presidential candidate, just after. The boss of the Les Républicains (LR) party, Christian Jacob, had been invited, as well as several pillars of the campaign, Jean-François Copé, Xavier Bertrand, the centrist Hervé Morin and the lawyer Thibault de Montbrial, adviser on sovereign subjects . On the menu of exchanges, a question: what line to take vis-à-vis Nicolas Sarkozy, who multiplies criticism in private, and still refuses – at this stage – to support Pécresse?
Two positions clash. Some consider that “Valerie” must free itself from this cumbersome guardianship, while the others judge that it cannot do without the support of the former leader of the right – baptized ironically “His Majesty” through some – and that it is a question of showing him signs of attention and respect, so as not to hold him up.
In the office, the lawyer Thibault de Montbrial puts his feet in the dish: “Do we really need Sarkozy, who made 20% in the 2016 primary [20,7 % contre 44,1 % pour Fillon] ? », he wonders, ensuring that he meets many right-wing voters who tell him that “Sarkozy is the past”. “It’s good, the newcomers to politics are putting our ideas back in place! », laughs Jean-François Copé. For his part, Hervé Morin explains that “Nicolas” has the same strategy for two years: “He thinks no one is up to the task of succeeding him, and he hopes to deal 150 constituencies with Macron as part of a coalition deal. » But it’s “an affective” and, “In the end, he will be with us, if we know how to put the forms”.
Xavier Bertrand agrees: “You have to be very, very close to him,” the best way, according to him, to prevent him from breaking with his political family. He regrets that the former president was not quoted enough during Pécresse’s speech. ” You’re kidding, replies Cope. It was quoted twice, that’s enough! »
“What are they doing to us here? »
The last square of Sarkozyists was also in the sights, accused of poisoning the campaign from within. Supporters of the candidate did not appreciate the attitude of certain relatives – or reputed as such – of Mr. Sarkozy, at the Zenith. As soon as the speech began, MEP Nadine Morano heaved exasperated sighs, while Paris Senator Pierre Charon, a former member of the “firm” (the clan that accompanied Mr. Sarkozy to power in 2007), sent murderous messages on his iPad : “Catastrophic”, “null”, “ridiculous…”. One of them evoked the decor composed of three blue, white and red curved panels: “Toboggans for sliding…”
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