As the police shootout and standoff early Wednesday morning in the Paris suburb of Saint Denis, France was in its contentious moments, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour and guest Julien Theron couldn’t help but fret about how the standoff was helping to “literally stok[e] the fires of the far right, anti-immigrant, anti-immigration, xenophobic parties” in Europe.
In an pause between updates from correspondents Atika Shubert and Frederik Pleitgen on the scene, Amanpour turned to Theron for a brief diversion by expressing concern that the raid was contributing to some “very ugly political ramifications.”
Speaking of “[t]he whole refugee crisis” and how one of the terrorists who blew themselves up on Friday had a fake Syrian passport, Amanpour expressed concern that the whole situation “is literally stoking the fires of the far right, anti-immigrant, anti-immigration, xenophobic parties” across continental Europe.
Amanpour turned her attention to France specifically by alluding to regional elections (slated for December) and a presidential election in 2017 and asked Theron: “What do you think the political landscape will look like in the next — after the next round of elections, in the wake of this attack?”
Theron agreed with Amanpour’s assessment and fretted that “[i]t’s a European trouble” with “the rise of the far right” coming “[e]ven in countries — the most dead-locked, the most democratic countries like Sweden or Finland and Denmark.”
The left-leaning college professor further opined that “[w]e have a kind of political crisis throughout the continents and the situation, the political situation is tense now days” as he hyped that right-leaning members of parliament “booed the [Socialist] government” with “[o]ne of the MP[s] from the Republicans said that the government has blood on their hands.”
As opposed to emphasizing the deadly standoff taking place inside the northern Paris suburb, Theron lamented how “the far-right” has created a “dangerous situation” inside a terror-griped France:
I mean, it's dangerous situation to say that, so it's pretty tense and the far-right is on the rise as well and like you said, we have regional elections in one month and a half. For the first time, they might get regents, and the presidential election in 2017, the stakes are still here.
In one of Amanpour’s other liberal outbursts in 2015, she complained in the moments before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was reelected on March 17 that he, his Likud Party, and “right-wing” allies were guilty of holding “a sort-of racist policy towards” Arabs.
The relevant portion of the transcript from the 2:00 a.m. Eastern hour of CNN Newsroom Live on November 18 can be found below.
CNN Newsroom Live
November 18, 2015
2:48 a.m. Eastern
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR: Since you're a political scientist, this is also — has very ugly political ramifications. The whole refugee crisis, now trying to link these attacks to one that posed as a refugee who came in. This is literally stoking the fires of the far right, anti-immigrant, anti-immigration, xenophobic parties, here, in Sweden, in Germany, across Europe right now and there's elections in France and in other parts of Europe in the not-too-distant future. What do you think the political landscape will look like in the next — after the next round of elections, in the wake of this attack?
JULIEN THERON: You're completely right. It's a European trouble. Coming into Europe, where there's a refugee crisis, and questions around Europe and the rise of the far right. Even in countries — the most dead-locked, the most democratic countries like Sweden or Finland and Denmark. We have a kind of political crisis throughout the continents and the situation, the political situation is tense now days. We have to find out some first security measures and to promote democracy because it’s — it is what it is about in Europe, about democracy. Regarding the French political scene, what it's all about. We're seeing yesterday, at the parliament, they booed the government. One of them, one of the M.P. which is actually troubled with —
AMANPOUR: What party?
THERON: — the Republicans. One of the M.P. from the Republicans said that the government has blood on their hands. I mean, it's dangerous situation to say that, so it's pretty tense and the far-right is on the rise as well and like you said, we have regional elections in one month and a half. For the first time, they might get regents, and the presidential election in 2017, the stakes are still here.
AMANPOUR: We just want to say that our police sources are giving more information. There were six suspects, holed up inside that building, which accounts for what we have accounted for, according to sources. Three were killed. Three are under arrest. So, confirmation that they were just six suspects inside that building, which was the focus of operations for about four hours, from the dark hours into the morning light and that there was one woman who blew herself up with a suicide vest.
