What was Mitterrand's concept of 'le coup d'état permanent'?
Ah, 'Le coup d'État permanent'. This was not a call to arms, but rather an observation, a philosophical inquiry into the nature of power in the Fifth Republic. It concerns the concentration of executive authority, the way in which the very structures of the state can, under certain circumstances, become instruments of an almost continuous, subtle seizure of power by the presidency. It is a critique of the tendency for the modern state, irrespective of who governs, to expand its reach, to centralize its functions. The intention was to provoke reflection on the delicate balance between effective governance and the preservation of democratic liberties, a theme that preoccupied me throughout my intellectual life.
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