As France burns, the far right sees an opening – POLITICO

PARIS — Out-of-control wildfires fueled by extreme heat and drought might seem unlikely electoral fodder for France’s far right.

Marine Le Pen’s National Rally has spent years opposing green regulations. Yet the party is seizing on the country’s worst blazes in years to argue that President Emmanuel Macron’s government is failing in one of its most basic duties: protecting people and their homes.

Edwige Diaz, a National Rally MP and close Le Pen ally from the fire-hit Gironde region, says the blazes are the latest in a series of crises — from extreme weather to concerns over crime and child safety — that expose the government’s broader inability to protect the public.