The year is 2045. President Emmanuel Macron is about to give his farewell address at Sorbonne University, in the heart of Paris. Historians agree that he is likely to rank among the most consequential leaders in European history.

First elected as president of France in 2017 at just 39 years old, Macron sparked great hopes for domestic reform and as a strong advocate for a unified Europe. But his zeal for reform was tempered by the shocks of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. By 2027, when he stepped down, Macron was widely viewed as a competent but polarizing president who had fallen short of greatness.

Cringe.

I didn’t keep reading after that.