Marine Le Pen guilty

[Eichhörnchen]

It would seem that the French judges have the balls others lack

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwyq40yz70qo?fbclid=IwY2xjawJXWHpleHRuA2FlbQIxMQAB HX4Px8q_bjOLTDjM6CzlTEB7-dnm7f3XIooes851N-8auuwHQkDQe6TkKA_aem_-ekRf6ojmZkeoySimr4hNQ

[Moonlight]

I wonder if they're going to investigate every other Political Party as well?, anyway the jobs been done, down with the Populist and Far Right Parties and back with the Status Quo Parties, those Twonks will do anything to stay in power. :O:

[Skybird]

The only question is whether the legal allegations are well-founded and also the evidence, or whether it's just a contrived scandal to get rid of her. I have not followed the case and refrain from commenting, I simply have no idea.

But it is disturbing that after the EU intervention regarding the elections in Romania and the shooting down of the EU-unpopular candidate there and the subsequent threats by a member of the EU Commission against Germany that if the AfD were to win here they would “do to Germany what they did to Romania”, another EU-critical voice set to politically climax now is being politically downed in France.

However, the movement founded by the LePens will survive without her. It could even be that it gets specifically stronger due to this sentence today. The enemies of LePen might find out that they won a pyrrhic victory only.

[Eichhörnchen]

Nothing mobilises populist support like a charismatic leader - surely they'll have to be severely hobbled without her?

[mapuc]

For me the question is: Did she commit a crime or not.

The other thing is for me nothing but speculations.

Markus

[Aktungbby]

:hmmm:.../\ as they say in all 'mort le franc' mysteries:"Just follow the money!":|\\BOTTOM LINE: She was 49% stupid; and her plentiful political foes were 51% on her rightwing derriere!:/\\chop:shucks:

[Jimbuna]

The only question is whether the legal allegations are well-founded and also the evidence, or whether it's just a contrived scandal to get rid of her. I have not followed the case and refrain from commenting, I simply have no idea.



DITTO

[Skybird]

[Tichys Einblicke] (https://www.tichyseinblick.de/meinungen/chefin-gruenen-gleiches-verbrechen-wie-marine-le-pen/) The leader of the French conservatives, Marine Le Pen, is barred from running in the election. The leader of the Green Party, Franziska Brantner, committed the same crime. Our capital correspondent was an accomplice.

The Greens were expelled from the Rhineland-Palatinate state parliament in 2006. This meant they lost their representatives and their staff. A severe blow to a party's ability to campaign. Staff members of members of the Bundestag and the European Parliament helped them regain re-election to the state parliament in 2011. This is a crime for which the promising French opposition leader Marine Le Pen is barred from running in the election – and which the current leader of the Green Party, Franziska Brantner, also committed. In Rhineland-Palatinate in 2011.

The Bundestag alone provides each member of parliament with a budget of over €25,000 a month, from which they can finance the salaries of their staff. The salaries alone. The costs of social security are then added on top. Similar regulations with varying budgets exist in the state parliaments and the European Parliament. These employees serve the MPs. They also select them. But officially, they are employed by the respective parliament. They are therefore prohibited from working for the party. Actually, that is. But hardly any law is circumvented more often and openly than this one. Unless it concerns a promising conservative opposition leader. In that case, such laws also take effect. In two of the 27 EU countries, promising opposition leaders are already prohibited from running for election. The trend is increasing. The CDU, CSU, and SPD are preparing similar measures for Germany under the pretext of "incitement to hatred."

When it comes to left-wing politicians, the same accusations are not a problem. For example, in the case of Franziska Brantner. The Green Party leader sat in the European Parliament in 2011. She represented the "Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region," which includes Ludwigshafen in Rhineland-Palatinate, the headquarters of BASF. Brantner used this pretext to assign her staff member from the extra-parliamentary opposition to the Rhineland-Palatinate Green Party's election campaign.

The easiest way to circumvent the law is to use the "voluntary commitment" of MPs' staff. If they are party members, they put up posters in their "free time." They stand at booths, participate in demonstrations, or attend party conferences. The fluid boundaries between these staff members' working hours and their "free time" are demonstrated on social media, where some take up party positions several times a day.

Three Green MPs in the Bundestag came from Rhineland-Palatinate at the time. The MPs assigned four of their staff members to the party. Among them was the author of these lines. In 2010, these were still a few tasks, but the closer the election in March 2011 drew, the more tasks the party took on. It started with pasting posters and ended with the press review for the party's top candidates in the state elections—who were not the bosses of these employees. Three of these four employees all worked "voluntarily" in the Mainz district association and were thus able to justify their misappropriation to the outside world. Three of the four employees had their offices in the party's state headquarters.

But there was also a regular telephone roundtable in which these employees coordinated their support for the party's election campaign. During working hours. From work phones. This roundtable also included the staff member of European Parliament member Franziska Brantner. The employee was not a member of a Rhineland-Palatinate district association. She participated in these roundtables during working hours for a state association to which she did not belong. All of this was still "free time." All of it common practice. Even in parties other than the Greens. Only in the case of the French opposition leader was it sufficient for a conviction.

For the employees, this "commitment" was also worthwhile. In 2011, thanks to Fukushima, the Green Party achieved its best result to date in Rhineland-Palatinate with 15.4 percent. They not only entered the state parliament, but also immediately entered the state government. One of the aforementioned employees was previously the party's district chairman in Mainz. He was given leadership roles in the administration, including by the later Federal Minister Anne Spiegel. Another was merely a follower and a better bag-carrier. He was, at least, enough to reach middle management in the administration. The author of these lines was asked if he would like to become press spokesperson for the parliamentary group – which he ultimately accepted.

The author did not feel guilty at the time. This behavior had always been too normal. Social Democratic employees live it out even more openly. All responsible politicians are aware of this problem. After all, they are the ones who caused it. If they wanted to tackle it – equally for everyone, as is appropriate in a constitutional state – then they would have all the necessary knowledge. The fact that this grievance is now being used to get rid of the second of 27 opposition leaders in the EU demonstrates the determination of said politicians to stay in power. If the voters can't get it done, then they can go through the courts.


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Who could honestly claim he is surprised.

[Shearwater]

The only question is whether the legal allegations are well-founded and also the evidence, or whether it's just a contrived scandal to get rid of her. I have not followed the case and refrain from commenting, I simply have no idea.[...]


[...]The so-called fake jobs system covered parliamentary assistant contracts between 2004 and 2016, and was unprecedented in scale and duration, causing losses of €4.5m to European taxpayer funds. Assistants paid by the European parliament must work directly on Strasbourg parliamentary matters, which the judges found had not been the case. [...]

It seems well-documented and well founded. Then again, all she did was giving back taxpayer money to the taxpayers, in this case herself and her cronies.

However, the movement founded by the LePens will survive without her. It could even be that it gets specifically stronger due to this sentence today. The enemies of LePen might find out that they won a pyrrhic victory only.

Time will tell, but I'd expect that a ruling such as this won't prevent her from pulling the strings in the background. Then again, you can't forego upholding the law just because doing so makes some people go nuts.

[Dargo]

Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the radical-left La France Insoumise (LFI), argues that ‘the decision to remove an elected politician should be one of the people’. LFI writes also in a statement that although Le Pen has been convicted of ‘serious offences’, the court should not be a means of getting rid of her party in the Rassemblement National.

[Skybird]

[TE] (https://www.tichyseinblick.de/kolumnen/aus-aller-welt/frankreich-le-pen-urteil-wahlen/) (...)
Even outspoken political opponents such as Prime Minister François Bayrou and former EU Commissioner Thierry Breton had warned against banning Le Pen from standing as a candidate. This would exclude a “very large number of our fellow French citizens”. Bayrou expected a “shock in public opinion” as a reaction to such a ruling. The arch-leftist Jean-Luc Mélenchon (La France insoumise) also stated that “the decision to remove an elected representative should be up to the people”. This shows how important democratic procedures are to the French people.

That shock will probably come, and is already being prepared with a thunderous roar. And the assessments of the rivals show that it is not clear in which direction it will have an impact. A greater mobilization of the RN and solidarity from other forces around it seems conceivable. Marion Maréchal, politically divorced from her aunt Marine, states: “She led our camp on the road to victory (...) that is her only fault”.

For this reason, Bayrou and Breton have issued warnings. And of course Bayrou is also facing an appeal verdict in a similar matter. Last year, he was acquitted at first instance. The party leader Bayrou (Modem) was conceded that he may not have known about the practices of his group in the EU Parliament. Sarkozy's prime minister, François Fillon, has also been on trial for similar allegations - and was acquitted.

Above all, there appear to be more and different practices in the same EU Parliament that are awaiting clarification. Firstly, there is the Qatargate scandal involving the Social Democrats, which involved vote-buying for despots in the Middle East and north-west Africa, such as Morocco and Mauritania (TE reported repeatedly). But even the current Parliament President Roberta Metsola (Partit Nazzjonalista, EPP) does not disclose all the gifts she receives. Former EP Vice-President Rainer Wieland (CDU) had his office fitted out with new furniture and the latest technology for 490,000 euros. Suspicions have just come to light that the Chinese technology company Huawei has also allegedly bribed MEPs.
(...)

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I take it for granted that the Palais Elyssee has mounted immense pressure on the court, in the - unspoken - name of Macron. But this could backfire tremendously. That here double standards got applied got clearer to me the deeper and longer I red about this all today.

[Exocet25fr]

Jean-Marie Le Pen was right about the Great Reset ! :o

With the far-left red judges complicity..........!:timeout:

Look at this Video, never see on the official merdia, of course !:D
AID yesterday in France and other European Countries.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PC_LljYDiys

Anyway, the RN will growing after this jugement, it's not finished...!:yep:

Jordan Bardella declares ‘total loyalty’ to Marine Le Pen after court finds her and RN officials guilty of embezzlement

The president of France’s far-right National Rally (RN) party has described a court’s decision to ban Marine Le Pen from public office for five years, wrecking her hopes of becoming president in 2027, as “disproportionate, political and partisan”.

Jordan Bardella said the punishment for Le Pen’s conviction for embezzling European parliament funds would deprive millions of French voters of their democratic right to put her in the Elysée Palace.

Le Pen has said she will appeal against the ruling, which if successful would lead to a new trial that she hopes will overturn the conviction and public office ban in time to campaign for the presidency.

Bardella, who is seen as the RNÂ’s Plan B if she fails, said he refused to consider this scenario and pledged his loyalty to Le Pen.


Bardella, 29, was speaking a day after a Paris court found Le Pen and 24 others from RN, including party officials, employees, MEPs and assistants, guilty of embezzling millions in European parliament funds as part of a fake jobs scam.

The trial last November heard how the party took money for EU parliamentary assistants but spent it on paying staff in France. None of the accused benefited personally from the embezzlement.

Le Pen, 56, was also given a four-year prison term, two years suspended and two to be served wearing an electronic bracelet. The sentence will be postponed until the appeal process is exhausted, but the five-year ban on standing for public office takes immediate effect.

After the verdict, Le Pen went on television to denounce what she said was the court’s “political decision” and vowed to “pursue all legal avenues” to be able to stand in 2027.

On Tuesday morning, Bardella gave a long live interview with French opinion channel CNews dismissing the embezzlement charges as “an administrative disagreement with the EU”. He described Le Pen’s sentence as “brutal” and a travesty against her and the RN, the single largest party in the French Assemblée nationale.

“If you are in politics, you are not above the law, but neither are you below it,” he said. “As long as she can bring the RN to power everything will be done to stop us getting there,” Bardella said. “The place to fight adversaries is on political not legal ground. I say to those rejoicing in this decision: today it’s us, tomorrow it will be you.”

Bardella added that he hoped the appeal court hearing could be held in time to correct the “error” of the lower court in time for Le Pen to stand in 2027 and said RN voters were being ignored as “second-class” citizens.

He called for “peaceful, democratic protests” across the country and said the party would be launching a leafletting campaign this weekend.

“We are not fashos, racists or far right. We are reasonable people who are patriotic, who love our country and we are fighting for the French people. We are fighting to get into power, not to remain in opposition.”

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/apr/01/marine-le-pen-ban-political-and-partisan-says-french-far-right-leader-jordan-bardella


Bardella maintains most Le Pen's support, comes top in poll as potential National Rally's candidate instead of Le Pen

A new Toluna Harris Interactive poll for RTL, published today, showed that party president Jordan Bardella would come top in the first round of the presidential election if he was picked as the National Rally’s candidate instead of Le Pen, with 35-36% of votes.

Former centre-right prime minister ‰douard Philippe came second with 25% of the declared support, with the far-left firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon third at 13%.

In various scenarios polled, about 90% of Le Pen and the National Rally’s voters would transfer his support to Bardella.

Bardella claimed that an online campaign, started last night, had already gathered “hundreds of thousands” of signatures in support, with more campaigning expected over the coming days.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/apr/01/marine-le-pen-guilty-france-national-rally-eu-ukraine-russia-europe-news-live