| Welcome to Balance of Power, bringing you the latest in global politics. If you haven’t yet, sign up here. For someone who portrayed himself as a modern-day Charles de Gaulle, there’s a certain irony in Emmanuel Macron’s drawn-out political demise bleeding away the very constitution his political hero founded. France’s Fifth Republic was born out of crippling political instability and an ever-revolving door of prime ministers. Sound familiar? The situation back in 1958 was of course more dire, but the system General de Gaulle created to restore order, bestowing upon himself American-style presidential powers, no longer feels fit for purpose. Macronism has brought it to the brink.  A French union protest against government austerity in Paris on Oct. 2. Photographer: Benjamin Girette/Bloomberg A system of checks and balances designed to shut out the far right from ascending to the Élysée Palace has instead created paralysis. A trickle of former allies, loyalists Macron appointed as prime minister, are calling on him to resign. Macron was spotted this week walking alone by the River Seine in a dark overcoat, no doubt mulling whether he should call it quits or limp on until 2027 when the next presidential election is due. De Gaulle himself sought solitude when his time was up, fleeing to the Irish countryside. Macron appears intent to hang on, but he is capable of surprises, like the snap parliamentary election he sprung on unsuspecting voters that precipitated the present crisis. He can perhaps take solace that across the Channel, the Conservatives — once the most successful political party in modern history — have been reduced to a rump, replaying Margaret Thatcher’s greatest hits at their hollowed out annual conference this week. France saw itself as above its neighbors; instead it’s become Europe’s problem child. The French debt load is the worry now, not Italy’s “lo spread.” Like de Gaulle, Macron aspired to lead a geopolitically autonomous Europe. But it’s Germany under Friedrich Merz that’s putting down the money and stepping into that role. What’s left after Macron is le déluge. — Flavia Krause-Jackson  Macron pays tribute at the statue of de Gaulle in Paris in May 2023. Photographer: Ludovic Marin/AFP/Getty Images | 
