France’s far-right received a new ally this week in the form of Steve Bannon, US President Donald Trump’s former Chief Strategist. The Front National party, led by alt-right politician and former French presidential candidate Marine Le Pen, handed Bannon a mic at the group’s annual event, where he gave a speech supporting strict immigration limitations and nationalism in France and abroad.
The speech gives cause for concern, given that the subject of the gathering was a Front National questionnaire of which the results showed that Front National voters strongly supported a “Frexit” proposition that would, in theory, follow the UK’s lead in leaving the European Union. Bannon encouraged the Front National’s work, telling the audience, “history is on our side.”
Though France narrowly avoided a nationalist takeover the likes of which have occurred in the US and UK over the past year, support for the FN and Marine Le Pen has only fortified. And if Donald Trump’s camp is planning on endorsing this phenomenon, then this is definitely a political streak to keep an eye on.
