AS USUAL, the president's first foreign trip is to the chancellery in Berlin. But the meeting with Angela Merkel does not go well. The two women instantly begin squabbling. Accused of breaking Europe's rules on borders, Mrs Merkel fires back that her visitor has not done her homework: Germany has always acted lawfully. Fine, growls la présidente: if Mrs Merkel wants a war, she will get one. On her return to Paris the president orders the European Union flag removed from official buildings. Soon afterwards she calls, and wins, a referendum on France's exit from the euro. The streets stir, stockmarkets swoon and Europe reels.
This cheerful tale, as depicted in "La Présidente" by François Durpaire and Farid Boudjellal, a graphic novel that imagines Marine Le Pen's first months as president of France, is not one the rest of Europe wants to hear. The continent's mood is just starting to brighten. Economies are picking up, and the Islamophobes lost in the Dutch election. Brexit, Europeans think, will be a disaster only for the British. True, the looming cloud in France is hard to ignore: the first round of France's presidential...
The Economist: Europe
