Emmanuel Macron is a night owl, says Mathilde Siraud in Le Point. In the small hours the French president goes through his notes, writes speeches, reads poetry, and has endless “nocturnal conversations” on Telegram, an encrypted messaging app. From about 10.30pm to as late as 2 or 3am, he “consults, probes and solicits” a network of informal advisors. “How do you feel about things?” he asks. “What is your reading on that?”
Macron has about 50 people in this network, 20 of whom are regulars, and they range from current and former politicians to a café owner he met last summer. For the recipients, offering a decent reply to the President of the Republic is a tall order. Some pretend not to have read the message and spend the night thinking up an impressive answer. And if he stops texting you? You’re probably out of the inner circle.