French President Macron says he wants to “piss off” unvaccinated people with new restrictions

French President Emmanuel Macron says he “really wants to piss off” unvaccinated people.

Macron said in an interview with Le Parisien newspaper Tuesday, “I’m not for pissing off the French… Now the unvaccinated, I really want to piss them off. And so, we’re going to keep doing it, until the end. This is the strategy.”

According to CNN, Macron has faced opposition in light of his remarks. Lawmakers continue to debate the President’s recently proposed set of rules for unvaccinated people, which would essentially ban them from public life. The debate over the bill was suspended early Wednesday morning and will resume later that day.

As a result, many wonder if stricter vaccine passes will be in effect by the intended January 15th deadline. The legislation would replace the current health pass with a vaccine pass, which would require proof of vaccination to access everyday activities. It would also no longer accept a negative test or recent recovery from Covid.

Macron continued, “I’m not going to put them in jail, I’m not going to forcibly vaccinate them and so, you have to tell them: from January 15, you will no longer be able to go to the restaurant, you will no longer be able to have a drink, go for a coffee, to the theater, you will no longer go to the movies.”

His rival in the upcoming presidential election, Marine Le Pen, took hold of the remarks, calling Macron “unworthy of his office” because he wants to make unvaccinated people “second-class citizens.”