When President Macron’s aides sought to broach the delicate subject of his tardiness they were put in their place. “I am never late,” he told them, according to Le Parisien, “because nothing can start without me.”
Although Mr Macron is said to have been half joking, his quip underlines the monarchical nature of a presidency that often seems to ascribe to the philosophy of Louis XIV, the 17th-century king whose motto was said to have been: “L’état, c’est moi.”
Mr Macron, 42, who enjoys draping himself in the trappings of power, came to office in 2017 telling journalists: “I will be the master of the clocks and you will just have to get used to that.”
Staff at the Élysée Palace, however,