Shots: Rachida Dati in the Ministry of Culture “well done Macron”

“The rumor has only been circulating for an hour. “A certain fervor, marked by surprise, was felt this Thursday, January 11, in the late afternoon on the part of the Parisian opposition. The news was finally confirmed a little after 19:00: the mayor of the 7th arrondissement of Paris, Rachida Dati, is joining the government of Gabriel Attal as Minister of Culture.

The video conference link was sent to the Changer Paris group’s elected officials at 6 p.m. “It’s very rare that you’re called into a meeting with just an hour’s notice,” comments this elected representative from Les Républicains. She was played quite well by Emmanuel Macron, he is quite technical. The Macronists will join in 2026, which will cut off the legs of Pierre-Yves Bournazel and Edouard Philippe. Not everyone will accept this in LR. »

“Everyone has their own life,” squeaks Jeanne d’Hauteserre, mayor (LR) of the 8th arrondissement. If she believes that she should leave the post of mayor of the region to take the post of minister, that is her choice. ” Before adding: “We were both elected in 2020 to six-year terms, I don’t have to judge her decision, it’s up to her constituents to decide whether she should leave her mayoral seat. »

“Masks are falling,” says Belliard

On the other side of the political spectrum, reactions are also multiplying. Anne Hidalgo, her main rival, sent out an unequivocal message on WhatsApp. “I wish good luck to those involved in the world of culture, given the trials they will have to go through with the appointment of Rachida Dati as Minister of Culture,” responded the capital’s Socialist mayor. A barely veiled reference to the insults regularly exchanged between the two sworn enemies.

“The masks are falling,” says Parisian David Belliard, deputy (EELV) mayor of Paris in charge of the transformation of public space and mobility. In Paris, Dati became a figure of right-wing populists and reactionaries. The way she entered this government clearly confirms that Macron is the president of the very right. »

“Previously, the accused minister had to resign. Now someone accused of corruption can be appointed minister. Rashida Dati has been charged since July 2021 with corruption… What an inspiration for the world of culture,” commented X Emmanuel Grégoire, First Deputy (PS) Mayor of Paris.

Jan Brossat, Senator (PC) from Paris, remembers the time when “Rachida Dati criticized right-wing elected officials who had gone to Macroni: betrayal, lack of backbone.” “Who would have thought then that this was a self-portrait? “, makes irony about the X-parliamentarian.