Yellow Vests Return As French Protests Spread And Macron’s Crisis Deepens Remnants of the original Yellow Vests (Gilets Jaunes) movement are joining the ongoing far-left riots/protests, potentially broadening social instability and increasing pressure on President Emmanuel Macron as he approaches the end of his term in crisis. France’s political, social and fiscal pressures are increasingly reinforcing one another, with high borrowing costs making its expansive welfare state harder to finance.  🇫🇷 🪧 President Emmanuel Macron called for calm on the eve of nationwide cost-of-living protests on Saturday that authorities fear could lead to a violent escalation of weeks of student demonstrations ➡️ https://t.co/Ss9gSyJdMO https://t.co/kIXt5CaPWR — AFP News Agency (@AFP) October 17, 2026 France’s five-year sovereign credit default swap spread has jumped to about 79 basis points, more than double its recent level near 30 basis points and roughly its highest since 2013. The surge shows investors demand a higher premium to insure French government debt against default as concern over sovereign credit risk mounts. However, the spread remains well below the 222 bps peak seen during the eurozone debt crisis in 2011.  These pressures have provided tailwinds for Marine Le Pen’s right-wing National Rally (RN), which is positioning itself as an alternative ahead of next year’s presidential election. Le Pen’s recently unveiled shadow budget proposes spending cuts to restore fiscal common sense and reduce the risk of a sovereign debt crisis. Le Pen’s Polymarket odds of winning next year’s election currently stand at … Bloomberg quoted the Interior Ministry early Saturday as expecting hundreds of actions, including blockades of motorway toll booths and service stations, alongside 90 marches. It looks like a new wave of mass protest have erupted in France, the “Yellow Vests” and students are demonstrating against high prices and working conditions. https://t.co/VslD5oH8Ds — MenchOsint (@MenchOsint) October 17, 2026 “We’re

President Donald Trump was having fun during a rally in Dalton, Georgia, at the expense of Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee in the 2026 U.S. Senate race in Michigan, who is running against the GOP nominee, Mike Rogers. Last week, Trump drew the ire of the left, who blasted him as a racist and an Islamophobe, when he called El-Sayed “Muhammad,” explaining as only he can, “I’m the president. I can call him whatever the hell I want. To me, he’s Mohammed, and he’s a radical jihadist.” Continuing that theme Friday night, Trump mocked El-Sayed’s name before revealing the Democrat’s middle name is actually Mohamed — his full name is Abdulrahman Mohamed El-Sayed. “His name is actually Abduladadalalalala,” the president joked. “It’s Adulbabababababa Mohamed Al-Sayed. So his middle name is Mohammed. So I was right.” Trump: “His name is actually Abduladadalalalala. It’s Adulbabababababa Mohammed Al-Sayed.” Nah, there’s no stopping this man No matter how many assassination attempts. He’ll keep going strong. https://t.co/aVNdUooxAT — Defiant L’s (@DefiantLs) October 17, 2026 Trump went on to call El-Sayed “a jihadist,” and accuse him of being a member of the Muslim Brotherhood — El-Sayed’s half-sister once spoke about her family having long-standing connections to the organization. El-Sayed has denied the accusation. As for the name Mohammed, Trump had this to say at the rally: “If you’re in doubt about somebody’s name from the Middle East, just say Mohammed, you have about a 65% chance… I’ve done it for years now. I’ve never been wrong.” Trump: “If you’re in doubt about somebody’s name from the Middle East, just say Mohammed, you have about a 65% chance. ‘Hello, Mohammed.’ I’ve done it for years now. I’ve never been wrong.” https://t.co/ryw3ai604s — johnny maga (@johnnymaga) October 16, 2026 Here’s a quick sampling of responses to the story,

ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith dished on his White House dinner with President Donald J. Trump, recalling the experience during a Friday appearance on Fox News host Sean Hannity’s show. The host and podcaster recently broke bread with the president along with HBO comic and social critic Bill Maher and ardent Trump supporter Kid Rock, an “epic” get-together in the words of the MAGA rapper. Stephen A. Smith reveals behind-the-scenes details from his White House dinner with President Trump, Bill Maher, and Kid Rock, praising Trump’s hospitality and sharing a hilarious exchange over Joe Biden’s autopen portrait: “When we were there, ultimately, he brought us into the Oval Office. We spent some time in there. He took us for a tour of where the new heliport is, where the UFC event was held months ago, showed us the ballroom and the construction that was taking place there, and took us to the West Wing. And you know what? He just seemed to be really appreciative of the history that existed inside the White House over the years. Of course, he showed us the new Rose Garden and how the grass is gone, and they put some hard flooring there so it looked more presentable, which it did. Naturally, he walked us down the colonnade section, where there are pictures of every single president from George Washington up to him, excluding one, which is Joe Biden. And instead of Joe Biden’s face being there, he’s got a picture of an autopen there. I said, ‘Now that’s just cruel. That’s just cruel.’ And he was like, ‘It’s funny, though. It’s funny.’ We sat there, and we could have stayed there for another hour. We didn’t have to run and catch flights to get the hell out of town.” — Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) October