The former deputy national security adviser to President Obama believes the defeat of Marine Le Pen, and victory for Emmanuel Macron, in the French presidential election shows the end of a wave of nationalistic populism.
Ben Rhodes celebrated Macron’s victory as a defeat for the movement that he associated with the Brexit vote and President Trump’s election.
“Macron’s win is a blow to far-right nationalism and a sign (after Austrian, Dutch elections) that the Brexit-Trump wave has broken in West,” Rhodes tweeted.
Macron’s win is a blow to far-right nationalism and a sign (after Austrian, Dutch elections) that the Brexit-Trump wave has broken in West https://t.co/DaRqKb4b8W
— Ben Rhodes (@brhodes) May 7, 2017
“For those worried about how to defeat Russian/Wikileaks meddling in elections the French showed us: vote against the person they’re helping,” he added.
For those worried about how to defeat Russian/Wikileaks meddling in elections the French showed us: vote against the person they’re helping
— Ben Rhodes (@brhodes) May 7, 2017
L’espoir est en marche. Vive la France! https://t.co/a9oMty8eNB
— Ben Rhodes (@brhodes) May 7, 2017
Official results were not yet available but Macron is projected to win the election overwhelmingly. Le Pen has already called Macron to congratulate him on the election.
The French refused to let this attack scare them into voting for the wrong person https://t.co/akiT6JsaRa
— Ben Rhodes (@brhodes) May 7, 2017
Instead of starting a new trend, Brexit and Trump wins were a wake-up call for voters in the West https://t.co/LAGQan8acB
— Ben Rhodes (@brhodes) May 7, 2017
Macron modeled his campaign on Obama’s 2008 campaign – shows a successful anti-establishment movement can be progressive and inclusive https://t.co/v3Mny4BXlb
— Ben Rhodes (@brhodes) May 7, 2017
Le Pen is the leader of the National Front party in France, which is generally characterized as a far-right nationalist party. She was seen as being close to Russian President Vladimir Putin and was against the European Union.
Obama endorsed Macron last week before the vote.
