On the night of November 5, 2024, Donald Trump won the United States presidential election for the second time. In contrast to his first success, winning by a hair's breadth in 2016, his return to the White House means the undermining of the American order, which had been established at the end of World War II. Now, better prepared for the US's highest office and backed by a Republican Party that is devoted to his cause, he is surrounded by leaders who share his desire to challenge the alliances that Washington had once patiently forged, and had hitherto seen as a force multiplier. Trump, more indifferent than ever to international law and its constraints, now has free rein.

That night, in Paris, the Assemblée Nationale proved unable to examine the Social Security budget bill on schedule, therefore passing it to the Senate without having voted on it, under the booing of the opposition. A month later, France was left without a government or a budget law, following the adoption of a no-confidence motion, tabled by the left and supported by the far-right Rassemblement National (RN) party.

Add to this a President who has been permanently politically weakened by the outcome of the July 7, 2024 snap elections, following the dissolution of the Assemblée Nationale in June. Emmanuel Macron had chosen to dissolve the Assemblée after the European elections, which appeared to be a disavowal of his coalition, backed by only a relative majority of supporting MPs. After the election, this bloc fell back even further, in the face of the RN and the left-wing Nouveau Front Populaire alliance, which brought together the left-wing parties after the early parliamentary elections.

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