MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
The French government has fallen. The prime minister submitted his resignation this morning, following a no-confidence vote in parliament. President Emmanuel Macron has cut short a trip to Saudi Arabia to return and address the nation. NPR's Eleanor Beardsley is with us now from Paris with the latest. Good morning, Eleanor.
ELEANOR BEARDSLEY, BYLINE: Good morning, Michel.
MARTIN: Eleanor, this is a lot in a short time. How is the country reacting to this?
BEARDSLEY: Well, there really is a feeling of complete uncertainty. There's no road map for this, Michel. It's the first time a government has been brought down by two opposing parties uniting in 70 years, and that's what happened last night. The far-right party and the leftist coalition, led by a far-left party, brought down this centrist government. Moderate, compromising voices were eclipsed. And after yesterday, there's this feeling that those hard-line voices in the parliament have only been empowered and will be less willing to compromise.
MARTIN: So what are these two opposition parties saying about why they did this?
BEARDSLEY: Oh, just simply that the budget the prime minister was trying to ram through hurts the working class and is a budget to help the rich. I want you to listen to Mathilde Panot. She's the spokesperson for the far-left France Unbowed party. She was absolutely crowing after the vote. She called it a historic day. The far left is demanding a prime minister from their camp and more. Let's listen.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
MATHILDE PANOT: (Speaking French).
BEARDSLEY: She says, "The chaos is not us. It's Emmanuel Macron, who, for seven years, methodically destroyed our public services and the working class. Macron and his policies for the rich have been defeated," she said. "Another world is possible." And she called for Macron to step down. Now, Macron has scoffed at any calls to resign, but they're increasingly frequent.
MARTIN: In the meantime, who will govern France?
BEARDSLEY: Well, the prime minister resigned this morning, and Macron must name a new prime minister. He's going to speak to the nation tonight, so we'll find out more. He knows he can't take months to appoint someone, like he did over the summer when the public was focused on the Olympic Games. France is now in a crisis, but who will he name? And that person will be faced with the same blocked parliament. Macron has to find a prime minister who can survive. Otherwise, the last two years of his presidency are going to be very chaotic. And the key will be for this prime minister to find a way to carve out a centrist coalition in this uncooperative parliament dominated by the extremes.
MARTIN: So just to be clear, this is really more about Macron than about the prime minister who just resigned.
BEARDSLEY: Absolutely, Michel. You know, Macron's opponents loathe him and accuse him of acting like a monarch for years now. And even his allies blame Macron for creating this situation because he called snap elections last summer when he didn't have to. And that's when his centrist party lost seats to the left and the far right, and now we have this fractured parliament. By law, Macron cannot call a new - new legislative elections before next summer, so nothing can change there. I spoke to columnist Thierry Arnaud, who's been following French politics for a long time. Let's hear what he said.
THIERRY ARNAUD: The president is trapped and France is weakened because there is no short-term political remedy that will provide stability for the next few months. So it's going to be touch and go at least until next summer.
MARTIN: Eleanor, before we let you go, what does this mean for France's international partners in Europe?
BEARDSLEY: It's not good news. France is the eurozone's second-biggest economy and political leader, alongside Germany. You know, borrowing costs in France are now the same level as Greece, and Germany is having political uncertainty now, too. So at a time when Europe needs to be strong and united, with a war raging and President Trump about to take power, it's not. And this is hardly the backdrop Macron wanted as he prepares to welcome world leaders - including President-elect Donald Trump - this weekend for the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral.
MARTIN: That is NPR's Eleanor Beardsley. Eleanor, thank you.
BEARDSLEY: Thank you, Michel. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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