SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
By the way, President Macron is a fine looking man and he should be. This week, Le Point magazine reported that President Macron spent nearly $31,000 on makeup services during his first three months in office. That's a lot of blush. The news did not come out at a propitious time politically. President Macron's public approval rating is Trumpian, if you please - just in the mid-30s - after he announced deep cuts to the French federal budget and a delay in tax cuts that he'd promised during his campaign. And the head of the French armed forces resigned to protest slashes in the military budget.
But the French press adds that President Macron's beauty expenses favorably compare with those of his predecessors. President Francois Hollande reportedly spent $35,000 every three months on his makeup - but then, like a few of his predecessors, he was involved with a movie star mistress. President Macron is just trying to look his best for France. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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