French presidential candidate Marine Le Pen has been in politics for a long time, but her tough stances on immigration and national independence garner her regular comparisons to political newcomer, President Donald Trump. In an accusation similar to one made by Trump that has caused great controversy, Le Pen is alleging the outgoing government of President Francois Hollande is wiretapping her campaign.
Here AFP reports:
Le Pen charged that the Hollande government is spying on her campaign, echoing allegations by her conservative rival Francois Fillon.
“I’m not naive, I know that the government has used (wiretaps) for many decades,” Le Pen said, adding: “It must stop.”
The allegation comes after earlier this year WikiLeaks provided evidence the CIA had ordered spies to collect information on the French presidential election in 2012. Fox News reported on the leaks:
The document , which WikiLeaks published late Thursday and described as “tasking orders,” suggest that American spies wanted an insider’s take on the race, including details of party funding, internal rivalries and future attitudes toward the United States.
Although WikiLeaks’ publication of a purportedly secret CIA document was striking, the orders seemed to represent standard intelligence-gathering.
French media, which are consumed with the upcoming electoral contest only two months away, gave the publication relatively light attention Friday.
The CIA declined to comment on the release. WikiLeaks did not answer questions about the document’s provenance but said in an email that it was authentic.
Read more here. Given the evidence about the CIA, it doesn’t seem beyond the pale for Le Pen to consider that others may be monitoring her campaign’s activities.
