Controversial Politician Rachida Dati Appointed France’s New Culture Minister
deadline.comNewly appointed French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal took France’s political and media spheres by surprise on Thursday as he named controversial politician Rachida Dati as his culture minister.
Her arrival in the new-look centrist cabinet was unexpected given that Dati was a spokesperson for centre-right President Nicolas Sarkozy during his presidential campaign and was Justice Minister from 2007 to 2009 under his presidency.
The appointment was made as part of a government cabinet reshuffle rolled out by Attal just two days after he became France’s youngest ever prime minister in a move by President Emmanuel Macron to reboot his presidency, which began with a centre-left mandate but is now moving the dial to the right.
Dati replaces Rima Abdul Malak whose position has been looking fragile in recent weeks after she found herself at odds with Macron over her suggestion that Gérard Depardieu should be stripped of his Legion Of Honor in light of multiple sexual assault accusations and opposition over a controversial new immigration law.
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