President Emmanuel Macron’s newly picked prime minister wasted no time in putting a pointed distance between himself and France’s beleaguered leader.

The end of the Olympics also closed out the feel-good limbo that had frozen French politics. Now President Emmanuel Macron and his newly chosen prime minister will have to figure out how to govern a France that looks on the verge of ungovernability.

Opponents say selection of Michel Barnier, a member of the conservative party, ignored the results of recent snap elections.

Over 100,000 protested the president’s attempt to undermine the victory of a left coalition in July’s election.

Mélenchon’s strategy of uniting with Macron in the name of blocking the rise of the far right proved disastrous for the working class, paving the way for the forming of a far right government.

The French president named Michel Barnier, the European Union’s former Brexit negotiator, nearly two months after elections that kept the far right from power but resulted in political deadlock.

PARIS (AP) — President Emmanuel Macron named EU former Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier as France’s new prime minister on Thursday after more than 50 days of caretaker government.

By John Irish PARIS (Reuters) -Thousands of people demonstrated across France on Saturday against Emmanuel Macron's decision to pick centre-right politician Michel Barnier as prime minister, with leftist parties accusing the president of ignoring election results.

They were responding to a call from a far-left party leader who criticised as a power grab the president's appointment of a right wing prime minister.

One of the first tasks of the newly appointed French Prime Minister and former Brexit negotiator is to convince Brussels that France is reducing its massive debt before Paris faces penalties. He also needs to quickly pass next year’s budget,