The picture (below) seems to be of Mitterrand at some point using an apparently compliant Renaud, probably for electoral purposes. Mitterrand was elected President of France in 1981 on a programme of reforms and a commitment to anti-racism. But a combination of galloping inflation, a balance-of-payments crisis and a budget deficit led to a retreat from promises to “change the life” of France. The government retreated, too, on its anti-racism policies and its commitment to the integration of immigrants, continuing the hard line on immigration controls and deportations of the previous government of the right under Giscard D’Estaing. As early as October 1981, a new law made the conditions for entry into the country even more restrictive than under Giscard. Mitterrand was capitulating to the right. By 1984, the right to family reunification became virtually meaningless. Jean-Marie Le Pen’s fascist Front National argued that the mainstream politicians of both left and right agreed with its arguments but were afraid to adopt its solutions. Whether it was the housing crisis, unemployment, rising crime, the undermining of French national identity, or AIDS, immigrants, they said, were responsible and should be repatriated. Not surprisingly, the Renaud-Mitterrand show didn’t last long. Later, in this song, Renaud depicted an old and failing Mitterrand having his final nightmare:

Tonton (Mitterrand) is angry

Everything’s turned upside down,

History, glory, it’s all falling apart

Because, this evening, the old man

(it’s hard)

Has a stone in his shoe,

A cold that hangs on,

And then, last night, oh misery,

He dreamt that one day

The left would come back

Bonhomme qui va austère
Au milieu des landes, des bruyères
Silhouette insolites
Bloc de granit
Tonton foule la terre
Lentement
Comme le temps

Le temps qui, pourtant, emporte
Les idées, les hommes et les amours mortes
Le temps qui lui reste
Dans la même veste
Avant de n’être plus
Qu’une statue
Un nom de rue

Il a son beau chapeau
Il a son long manteau
Il a son chien, le brave
Le gros qui bave
Il a le regard des sages
Il est la force tranquille, sereine
Il est comme un grand chêne
Il sait la futilité
De toute chose
La douceur et
La fragilité des roses

Bonhomme qui va austère
Au milieu des landes, des bruyères
Silhouette insolite
Bloc de granit
Tonton foule la terre
En sifflotant
Comme le vent

Le vent qui, pourtant, emporte
Son joli chapeau que le chien rapporte
Il est plein de bave
Ce n’est pas bien grave
Un chapeau ça se lave
Mais ça fait sale
Et tonton râle

Tonton est colère
Tout va de travers
L’Histoire, la gloire, tout foire
Parce-que ce soir
Le vieille homme a, c’est dur
Un caillou dans sa chaussure
Un vieux rhume qui dure
Et puis cette nuit, misère
Il a rêvé
Qu’un beau jour
La gauche revenait

Tonton s’en va
A petits pas