According to Catherine Trautmann, the former Prime Minister “had the ability to create a positive, active resistance to the rise of the National Front.”
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“Lionel Jospin had a culture of left-wing unity and an ability to capture what was changing in our different political parties,” responded the new mayor of Strasbourg, Catherine Trautmann (PS), after the death of former Prime Minister Lionel Jospin on Sunday, March 22, at the age of 88. She was the government spokesperson (1997-1998) and then Minister of Culture from 1997 to 2000.
According to Catherine Trautmann, the former Prime Minister “had the ability to create a positive, active resistance to the rise of the National Front.” She pays tribute to a man who “had a very high idea of serving the State, a Prime Minister very demanding in daily work and government work, but also extremely precise, attentive. It is fortunate to have been able to benefit from this experience.”
The failure of Lionel Jospin in the first round of the 2002 presidential election against Jean-Marie Le Pen “was a considerable test for all of us, and particularly for him,” adds Catherine Trautmann.



