The French newspaper Les Echos has published an opinion piece titled ‘The Frenchmen’s Desire for Trumpism’, where the authors analyze the results of a study on the degree of political trust, conducted by a Paris-based think tank, the Institute of Political Studies.

A think piece titled The Frenchmen’s Desire for Trumpism has been published in the French newspaper Les Echos, which summarized the results of a survey conducted by the Paris-based Institute of Political Studies which sought to determine how much faith the French had in their leaders.

The newspaper noted that according to the study, the French would like more protection at the national level and at the same time want “more conscious economic liberalism.”

However this doesn’t mean the country is sliding left; quite the opposite. According to The Economist, the  French use the term ‘liberal’ to mean “faith in free markets and competition.”

Commenting on the matter, Veronique de Riche-Flores, chairwoman and founder of the independent think tank RF Research, told Sputnik France that the deterioration of the geopolitical and political situation has begun to “disturb” a rather large number of people.

She specifically cited “the concern that goes beyond the separate states and is already characteristic for many countries today.” This concern is related to economic instruments used under the current policy, which lead to a “sufficiently widespread emergence of protectionist temptations”.

“I think the most important thing is that there is a sociological movement in support of economic individualism, which rapidly turns into liberalism in its various forms,” Riche-Flores said.

Asked about the reasons for this surge of French interest in economic patriotism and protectionism, she pointed to transformations in the economic environment.

“Since the 2008 crisis, the economic environment has changed significantly, and attempts to ride out the crisis have failed,” she said.

Riche-Flores also dwelt on whether there is some contradiction between the French perception of Donald Trump personality and his statements regarding the economic sphere.

“It’s ironic, but I think it can be explained by the thirst for change and the fear caused by stagnation that has been in place in the past few years,” she pointed out.

She also predicted that even though the US electorate, who swept Donald Trump to power, will be unable to enjoy the fruits of his policy, hunger for power will certainly remain.

“It’s necessary to learn lessons from all this. When facing economic and political paralysis, citizens want to shake up everyone and see policy take the initiative once again,” she concluded.

Meanwhile, supporters of the new US President mingling with anti-Trump protesters in downtown Washington, DC told Sputnik they believe Donald Trump is an honest man who will improve economic prospects for Americans.

“People are going to think I’m insane but I think economically Trump will be good for the country,” a Trump supporter named Carly said, adding that “the only thing I’m really worried about is the environment.”