According to information France Info, the Élysée Palace recently ordered analytical notes from specialist companies to monitor the rise of a libertarian movement in France, inspired by Argentinian President Javier Milei. This movement, which advocates a minimal state, drastic cuts in public spending and total freedom of expression, seems to be gaining ground on social networks.
The government is particularly concerned about the growing spread of these ideas outside the usual circles, affecting more and more intellectuals, journalists and opinion leaders. Several influential accounts on X (ex-Twitter), relaying virulent criticism of state interventionism and taxation, have been placed under surveillance. The Élysée fears that this dynamic could eventually translate into social protest movements.
The rise of this libertarian movement is taking place within an international context marked by the re-election of Donald Trump in the United States and the growing influence of Elon Musk, accused by Emmanuel Macron to promote a "reactionary international" aimed at weakening European democracies.
In France, political figures like Éric Ciotti, a new ally of Marine Le Pen, have already openly defended Milei's ideas. The leader of the Union of the Right for the Republic also calls for a massive reduction in public spending, an approach that could appeal to a portion of the electorate. While the government seeks to contain the emergence of this current, the attention paid to these libertarian accounts reflects a broader concern: that of a rupture between the state and a growing part of the population, increasingly receptive to discourses advocating a weakening of central power and total economic freedom.
