Minc, an influential businessman who has advised multiple French presidents dating back to François Mitterrand in the 1980s, was one of Macron’s earliest backers. The 76-year-old advised Macron, whose office declined to comment for this story, before his 2017 victory and during his first term, which Minc said wasn’t too bad.
But their relationship slowly deteriorated as Macron made what Minc he believes were a series of missteps and surrounded himself with “an incredibly mediocre team.”
The two stopped speaking shortly after the president called for an ill-advised snap election last year. Today, Minc is perhaps most scathing of the growing number of former Macron allies-turned-critics.
Minc’s critiques are much more personal than those of, say, Gabriel Attal and Edouard Philippe, two former prime ministers who spoke out against Macron last month at the height of France’s recent political crisis. Minc says Macron’s spiraling mistakes since his reelection in 2022 are rooted in narcissism, as the president believes — per Minc — that he is smart and cunning enough to solve any problem thrown his way.
“Macron is in denial of reality … He is crushed by his own psychology,” said Minc.
Others who know Macron have compared him to an inveterate gambler who is always convinced he’s just a win away from taking down the house, no matter how many losses came before.