Creatix Politics / August 19, 2025
Trump Could Live to 100: Lessons from Philippe Pétain and Jean-Marie Le Pen
Disclaimer: We think President Trump is doing a fantastic job keeping his promises and pursuing his vision of putting America First to Make America Great Again. We give them a 9 out of 10 so far in the second term. We don't give him a 10 because he's not resting enough. He is overworking himself and that will most likely take a significant negative toll in his health. Now, we could be wrong, again.
Throughout modern history, certain political figures have defied expectations not only by shaping national politics but also by enduring far longer than their critics predicted. Donald J. Trump (born 1946), still energetically dominating American politics well into his late seventies, now raises speculation about whether he could thrive into his nineties or even past 100. The comparison becomes compelling when set against two French leaders: Philippe Pétain (1856–1951), who lived to 95, and Jean-Marie Le Pen (1928–2025), who reached 96. Each man represents a strain of right-wing politics — authoritarian traditionalism in Pétain, populist nationalism in Le Pen, and disruptive populist conservatism in Trump. Their political careers reveal striking parallels in ideology, controversy, and sheer resilience.
Pétain: The Conservative Father Figure
Marshal Philippe Pétain embodied an older, hierarchical form of conservatism. His authority was rooted in military victory at Verdun (1916) and a vision of discipline, order, and national renewal. When France collapsed in 1940 under Nazi Germany, Petain rebranded conservative values into the slogan “Work, Family, Fatherland”, explicitly rejecting liberal democracy.
Pétain's politics were conservative and paternalistic. French citizens were expected to obey, sacrifice, and return to traditional virtues. In 1940, at the age of 84, he assumed leadership of France as head of the Vichy regime, projecting himself as a paternal savior of a defeated nation. He collaboration with Hitler and his anti semitic policies indelibly marked his regime as one of moral failure.
After the liberation of France, Pétain was arrested and quickly tried for treason. His 1945 trial in Paris was one of the most sensational in French history, a national reckoning in which the once-revered “Hero of Verdun” was forced to answer for his collaboration with Nazi Germany. Proceedings were marked by drama: the prosecution portrayed him as betraying the Republic, while his defenders pleaded his advanced age, his wartime heroism, and his claim that he sought to shield France from even worse suffering.
At the age of 89, Petain was convicted. He was originally sentenced to death, but given his advanced age and status as a World War I hero, Charles de Gaulle commuted the sentence to life imprisonment. Pétain was confined on the Île d’Yeu, a remote island off the coast of Brittany, where he survived for about five years, dying at 95. Petain was a living symbol of both heroic endurance and national disgrace, a cautionary tale about the slippery slope of conservative authority that can slide into authoritarian treason of republican values.
Le Pen: Populist Nationalism in the Democratic Era
Jean-Marie Le Pen, founder of the Front National, represented a later evolution of conservatism that was not hierarchical, but rather populist and insurgent. Unlike Pétain, he did not rule a state but instead fought from the opposition, railing against immigration, globalization, and European integration. His conservatism was infused with cultural nationalism, appealing to voters who felt alienated by elites and threatened by demographic change. His rhetoric was deliberately provocative, crafted less as policy than as spectacle, designed to energize a base by affirming their grievances and casting scorn on political elites. This style would later find striking echoes across the Atlantic in the United States.
Le Pen’s career was also marked by scandal: controversial remarks about the Holocaust, provocative rhetoric on race and religion, and his role in normalizing far-right discourse in France. Yet, despite repeated defeats in presidential elections, he endured for decades, passing the torch to his daughter, Marine Le Pen, who has mainstreamed his ideas further. His death at 96 underscored his incredible vitality, cementing him as a patriarch of European right-wing populism that "created" American populism.
Trump: Populist Conservatism, American Style
Donald Trump fuses elements of both Pétain’s paternalism and Le Pen’s populism but adapts them to the American stage. Like Pétain, Trump presents himself as a savior figure in times of crisis — “only I can fix it.” Like Le Pen, he thrives on anti-elite, anti-immigrant, nationalist populism, positioning himself as the voice of “real Americans” against globalists, immigrants, and entrenched elite institutions ("the swamp").
Unlike Pétain, however, Trump operates fully within a democracy, and unlike Le Pen, he actually won and captured the presidency. His politics combine nationalism, skepticism of global alliances, economic protectionism, and cultural conservatism. Yet he couples these with showmanship and media mastery, turning political rallies, press conferences, and social media tweets into addictive political entertainment.
Most strikingly, Trump at 79 still exudes vigor that rivals far younger men. His stamina is remarkable. On the campaign trail, he was reminiscent of Le Pen’s long-lived defiance. In his second term, he reminds us of young Pétain’s wartime resilience. Yet most men’s health deteriorates significantly once they hit 80, making Trump’s endurance all the more unusual. The question for many is for how much longer he can stay strong and healthy. Nobody knows. Maybe if he begins to rest a little more, with his good genes and top notch medical care, he could outlive his French equivalents, and rule American politics until he's 100.
Comparing Trump to Petain and Le Pen
-
Conservatism and National Identity:
-
Pétain defended traditional values during wartime collapse.
-
Le Pen emphasized cultural identity and anti-immigration nationalism.
-
Trump emphasizes “America First,” economic nationalism, and cultural traditionalism.
-
-
Style of Leadership:
-
Pétain: authoritarian paternalism.
-
Le Pen: populist opposition.
-
Trump: populist governance with celebrity charisma.
-
-
Controversy and Legacy:
-
Pétain was a WWI war hero who became infamous for his WWII collaboration with Hitler.
-
Le Pen is the father of the European far right
Trump polarizes America, facing indictments and impeachments while remaining extremely popular and effective at winning elections.
-
-
Longevity and Vigor:
-
Pétain lived to 95, a relic of France’s greatest wars.
-
Le Pen lived to 96, surviving long enough to see his movement normalized by his daughter.
-
Trump, now nearing 80, shows similar durability, raising the possibility that he could remain politically active into his nineties, perhaps even reaching 100.
-
Conclusion
Philippe Pétain, Jean-Marie Le Pen, and Donald Trump stand at different crossroads of right-wing politics: Pétain’s authoritarian conservatism, Le Pen’s populist nationalism, and Trump’s populist, media-driven conservatism. Yet their lives share two remarkable traits: a capacity to endure politically despite scandal and controversy, and an extraordinary physical longevity.
If Trump were to live to 100, he could follow in the footsteps of Pétain and Le Pen, men whose lifespans stretched across eras and whose politics left deep marks on their nations. The lesson may be unsettling but undeniable: figures of immense controversy can endure in life, in politics, and in historical memory, far longer than their opponents wish.
Now you know it.
www.creatix.one
Comments
Post a Comment