French president challenges Trumpism in speech to Congress

WASHINGTON — French President Emmanuel Macron told a joint session of Congress on Wednesday that the United States should stay in the Iran nuclear deal and the Paris climate change accord, both international deals that President Donald Trump has denounced as part of his America First foreign policy.

Macron's speech, delivered in the House chamber, spurred multiple standing ovations, many from Democratic lawmakers heartened by his none-too-subtle rebuke of many of Trump's positions and political instincts.

Macron upbraided those who he said were animated by the siren of nationalism, a political fault line in both America and Europe. He also defended free trade, globalism and science, and cited the contributions of African-Americans and women in the push for civil rights and equality.

"We have two possible ways ahead," Macron said. "We can choose isolationism, withdrawal and nationalism. This is an option. It can be tempting to us as a temporary remedy to our fears.

"But closing the door to the world will not stop the evolution of the world. It will not douse, but inflame, the fears of our citizens. We have to keep our eyes wide open to the new risks right in front of us."

Macron and Trump have forged what appears to be an affectionate relationship as newly elected outsiders. But their political centers of gravity remain distant, and their personal styles at times seem awkward.

On Tuesday, Trump, in full view of TV cameras, reached over and said he flecked a bit of dandruff off the younger man's shoulder in order to render him "perfect." Later, Macron threw his right arm over the taller man's shoulder and kept it there as they left a news briefing,

At times in his speech Wednesday, Macron lauded policies that have flowed from the relationship, including the recent airstrikes by U.S., French and British forces against three suspected chemical weapons facilities in Syria.

But there was no question that Macron also sought to distance himself from the president.

Macron offered a firm denunciation of Trump's threat to withdraw from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal by a self-imposed deadline of May 12 unless it is "fixed."

"We signed it, at the initiative of the United States," Macron said. "We signed it, both the United States and France. That is why we cannot say we should get rid of it like that."

The French president said supplemental agreements under discussion would address Trump's concerns. They include greater efforts to constrain Iran's support for militant groups in the Middle East, and additional monitoring of Tehran's ballistic missile program.

Macron was similarly critical of Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris climate accord, which Trump dismissed last June by announcing he "was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris."

"What is the meaning of our life, really, if we work and live destroying the planet, while sacrificing the future of our children?" the French leader asked.

"By polluting the oceans, not mitigating CO2 emissions, and destroying our biodiversity, we are killing our planet. Let us face it: There is no planet B."

Macron also took aim at the president's objections to global trade deals, which he said had created jobs on both sides of the Atlantic.

"A commercial war opposing allies is not consistent with our mission, with our history, with our current commitments for the global security," he said. "At the end of the day, it will destroy jobs, increase prices and the middle class will have to pay for it."

"Legitimate concerns" should be dealt with by negotiating within the World Trade Organization, he said.

"We wrote these rules," he said. "We should follow them."

Macron's speech to Congress followed two days in which he and his wife, Brigitte, were feted by the president and his wife, Melania.

The foursome took a helicopter ride Monday night to George Washington's riverside estate at Mount Vernon in Virginia, where they ate dinner on the terrace. On Tuesday, the Trumps formally welcomed the couple on the South Lawn of the White House, followed by a news conference. That night, Trump and Macron offered warm toasts at the first state dinner of the Trump administration.