Trump demands France ‘free Marine Le Pen’
Summary
Donald Trump condemned France’s conviction of far-right leader Marine Le Pen, calling her four-year sentence and five-year political ban a “witch hunt” and likening it to his own legal battles.
Le Pen was found guilty of embezzling EU funds and plans to appeal.
Trump claimed the charges were politically motivated, calling them a “bookkeeping error” and urging France to “FREE MARINE LE PEN!”
He and allies like Elon Musk argue left-wing governments use the legal system to silence opponents. Le Pen’s National Rally party was fined $2 million.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/04/04/trump-demands-france-free-marine-le-pen/Open linkView original on lemmy.world435
Comments84
Every accusation is an admission.
Ah yes, that left-wing government with a banker president. I guess everything is regarded as left by Trump.
Well, if you're far enough to the right, everything is to your left.
Anything he disagrees with is 'the left'
Just wait until he starts to call anything that disagrees with Putin and him non-human.
Certainly he's done that by now?
he will use putins buzzwords
He already does.
Macron left wing ? Best joke I heard in a long time XD As i understood she got immediate ineligibility because she claimed being innocent despite all the proofs showing she was the main administrator of this system of embezzlement (also, she advocated for years the use of ineligibility for politics accused of something during their mandate)
What is the expulsion of students for legal protest if not that?
Projecting, as they always do
I rather legal system than out the window system.
Also I'm pretty sure actual French Left-wing are not happy and do not like the precedent it sets. So pretty much the only party that is happy this happenned is the conservatives, but he is not going to say that is he?
Conservatives are happy what happened? Nothing has happened other than the orange turd making ridiculous demands.
French conservatives are fairly happy Lepen got banned yes.
Since America has now set a precedent for letting criminals get away with shit if they run for office, I wanna see Luigi Mangione run for congress
He's not old enough to run for president
Trump is a felon, Edward Rafael Cruz was born in Canada, and half of our Congresspeople are dementia patients. Who gives a fuck about the requirements at this point.
Unfortunately, there is no constitutional requirement that says the president can't be a felon or have dementia
There is one that you can't be part of an insurrection and that didn't matter either.
None of those are legal barriers. Being under 35 is.
Waging an insurrection is also a legal barrier. Does article 2 of the US constitution self execute? No? Then it can't be enforced, just like amendment 14, section 3.
Nobody really cares about laws anymore, so lets just ignore that one.
Can you imagine if he turns "full on maga", sings trumps praises, claims woke mind virus made him do it. Trump Pardons him and invites him to the white house. He 2 for 1s Trump and musk
Luigi wouldn't lose any votes if he gunned someone down on avenue of the americas
Perfection
He just needs to start wearing a MAGA hat at his court appearances.
Why would Trump be helping a Putin pawn? I have absolutely no idea...
Ha, go fuck yourself cheeto (France probably).
Not just France. Saying that in the US, too.
Big mad at functioning countries who can hold criminals accountable.
How is he aware of her bookkeeping?
Was he doing it?
I wouldn't be surprised.
It's just not a bookkeeping error, there are internal emails where they state that they wouldn't be able to keep the lights on without paying their staff with our taxes.
Source?
Here you go. My translation of the email :
Well I knew it wasn't a bookkeeping error. I believe the opposite of what the orange man says by default.
But I'm not aware about the actual fraud. They asked for more money when they already had enough money? The article you linked might translate wrong but they seem to be dismissing that email as proof.
Well yeah, "they" being the VP of the FN :)
It's just a bit of embezzlement
Just some pocket change, no biggie c'mon
Uh, le fuck off.
Please offer her asylum in the US.
And extend that offer to Orban, Fico, Farage, Abascal, Weidel and the rest of fascist scum.
Please please don't. You're setting great examples by putting them in prisons. Nobody anywhere needs American fascists getting reinforcements. It's better for everyone that they be incarcerated, banned from public office, and their wealth seized. If they can be rehabilitated, fine. Maybe. Otherwise let them rot.
I think we would set a better example if more people went the Mario's brother way.
I don't disagree
Yes Trump we know you love fascism, and that it's easier to establish fascist systems when laws are set aside.
Now would you kindly fuck off, and preferably go shoot yourself.
BOYCOTT USA NOW!!
On behalf of France to Trump:
Va te faire foutre.
I think for this one we can dust off one of my old favourites: "va te faire enculer à sec avec du gravier".
French here. Donald, take care of your burning house before you step in ours.
He's being ordered by Putin on his behalf, le penne is putins agent
She won't see an actual jail unless she seriously fuck-up, most of the sentence is suspended and as the remaining time is under two years she has the right to request house arrest or any other alternative sentence.
So the remaining sentence is that she can't run at next presidential election (provided that she doesn't get something else in appeal before the election).
Obvious reminder that if you or I would have stole 4 millions Euro we would see an actual jail.
Everything this idiot does, I look at through the eyes of the kremlin. That makes it make sense.
Trump = Krasnov
That is a fine mental gymnastic there.
I hope I'm not erring on the side of over-simplifying reality to make it abide to my limited mental capabilities to comprehend it, but more likely it is them, "He and allies like Elon Musk", who by doing what they normally do are using the legal system to silence themselves.
Rule of law 101
What's funny is that the French government is not "left-wing".
By comparison with MAGA they are.
In comparison with the US democrats they are.
By comparison with US in general Europe is living in communist utopia :)
They're arguing that as if they're not doing that exact thing themselves, as if they ain't silencing their critics. Worst part is he's disguising himself as a libertarian and someone who's pro free-speech, when his ideas of libertarianism only extend to his govt. and cronies and his ideas of freedom of speech extend to his own views and his own supporters. He's using the guise of being censored himself to censor literally anyone who opposes him.
"fine mental gymnastics"!?!?
There's a few American law firms that need to be listed here, just for starters.
'Fine', my ass
I guess he realizes he would be in the same boat as her if America had a functional legal system. Or maybe I'm giving him too much credit, thinking he has the self-awareness to compare his situation to hers.
trump must vouch for Le penne because she is also a russian asset, and putin will be disappointed of he doesnt.
How unsurprising and tiring. It's always the same.
It was not a witch hunt, it was a bitch hunt. And it succeeded.
He "demands", how cute...
In the Orange Goblin‘s world, why should criminals be prosecuted or sentenced instead of being pardoned? He should better deal with the mess he is creating at home and manage his own affairs.
Wilhoit's law.
Trump is a cunt. Sorry that’s disrespectful.
President Trump is a cunt.
Trump lacks the warmth and depth.
He keeps calling on France to do stuff when France is the country least likely to do said stuff.
Hopefully France does not.
Hopefully France cannot. The legal system should be independent to not be even able to cave to political pressure like this.
Hell no. Don’t let that right wing criminal free. We should have thrown our Orange Turd into jail.
Toton.
He so goddamn embarrassing.
I mean, 3 million euros is literal peanuts. Do be aware that this is a politically charged witch hunt.
One that fortifies the EU and weakens Russia.
I'm all for that
4 million euros is not peanuts when your population is 69 million
For a period of 12 years. Where the country generated a GDP of 32 trillion euros.
That's 0,0000125%.
The hospital I work at requires this amount of money monthly to pay us wagies, excluding the doctors. We're like 1300 employees.
The 200 doctors earn as much as we 1300 employees.
I'm not saying it wasn't a misallocated fund, but the sheer amount is laughable.
A drip in the bucket.
The fact that she misallocated it, shows lack of integrity, and the amount is enough for us to call her out on it.
We punish her mistakes. But the amount is nothing in the big picture.
I get your point and she was fined a fair amount, in consideration of all this. It is important to remember though that the ineligibility isn't a punishment, it's a preventive measure so that she doesn't steals more than she did
I was recently charged 300 quid for a balls up by the tax man. I don’t think she’s been fined nearly enough.
Oh for sure, guillotine her for all I care. But french folks like her 🤷🏻♂️ my french buddy voted for her instead of Macron.
Personally I'd vote for Macron but I'm not french. If we could vote as EU citizens, I would vote for Macron
EU citizens cannot vote in French presidential or parliamentary elections (They can in mayoral and EU elections though). But I get what you meant.
I can only vote on which Belgian I want to represent me in the EU as far as I'm aware
Different countries give different rights for their EU residents. The required minimum is EU parliament vote, but countries may or may not extend it to other elections. The participation to local election votes is quite recent in France (about 10 years). I don't see how we'll make them vote in more elections though without a change in the constitution (the blocking words are usually "representative of the nation" or "national electorate", they clearly ban foreign votes, even if they our our most trusted friends.