Sébastien Lecornu
Role at the time: Prime Minister of France, answering questions to the government in the National Assembly
Statement summary
Answering questions in the National Assembly four days after the attack, the Prime Minister calls it a terrorist and racist attack and says he makes his own the mayor of Trappes's words about speeches that arm those capable of acting. Later in the session he accuses left-wing deputies of political profiteering and says that in believing they are fighting racism they are playing into the hands of the far right and the RN.
“For several days, the mayor of Trappes has been repeating the right words. ... I make those words entirely my own. ... Everything smells of political profiteering, everything bears the mark of indignity. ... Believing you are fighting racism, you are playing into the hands of the far right and the Rassemblement national (Translated from French. Original: Depuis plusieurs jours, le maire de Trappes répète des mots justes. ... Ces mots, je les fais entièrement miens. ... Tout sent le recel politicien, tout marque l'indignité. ... Croyant combattre le racisme, vous faites le jeu de l'extrême droite et du Rassemblement national)”
Why we used this label
The reference point is the public rhetoric of Rassemblement national leaders and other far-right politicians about Trappes, Muslims and immigrants, which Trappes mayor Ali Rabeh holds responsible for the October 23, 2026 racist attack in Trappes and La Verrière. Lecornu adopts Rabeh's warning that speeches can arm people capable of violence, which accepts the mayor's point about rhetoric without naming the RN. He also accuses the left of exploiting the attack and of helping the far right. The two parts point in different directions, so we treated the statement as mixed.