Romaric Godin is an economics journalist at Mediapart and author of La Guerre Sociale en France, a study of Emmanuel Macron’s authoritarian neoliberal policies.
Giorgia Meloni’s far-right government is riding roughshod over basic democratic standards. This isn’t just because of her party’s fascist roots; it’s the end point of a long-term process that has placed the key economic decisions beyond popular control.
French presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon has a radical program that is far more detailed than any of his competitors. But it risks being derailed by capitalist pushback.
Offering a welcome rejoinder to many neoliberal orthodoxies, French economist Thomas Piketty has established himself as a sharp critic of growing inequality. But when he presents these ills just as a result of wrong choices, he ends up erasing the realities of class struggle — leaving him unable to explain how neoliberalism imposes its power.