Christine Boutin

Christine Boutin (Template:IPA, born 6 February 1944) is a French former politician leading the small French Christian Democratic Party. She served as a member of the French National Assembly representing Yvelines, from 1986 until 2007, when she was appointed Minister of Housing and Urban Development by President Nicolas Sarkozy. She was a candidate in the 2002 French presidential election, in which she scored 1.19% on the first round of balloting.<ref>Official results Template:Webarchive from the Ministry of the Interior</ref>

Boutin was the leader of the Christian Democratic Party (Parti Chrétien-démocrate), a socially conservative Christian-democratic party, which is associated with the greater UMP union party. She is best known for her very vocal opposition to civil unions in 1998 and same-sex marriage later on.

She announced on 21 October 2017 that she was leaving politics, resigning as departmental councillor for Yvelines.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Biography

Boutin was born in Levroux, Indre. She married her cousin Louis Boutin in 1967 with whom she had three children (the contradiction between her strong advocacy of Catholic dogmas and marrying one's first cousin remaining strictly forbidden by canon law is often pointed out<ref>Template:Citation</ref>). She entered politics in 1977 as a city council member of the village of Auffargis. In 1980 she was elected its mayor. Boutin was elected to the National Assembly in 1986.

In 1993, Boutin founded the anti-abortion NGO Alliance pour les droits de la vie (ADV) (English: Alliance for Human Life), considered the largest anti-abortion organization in France.<ref>Template:Cite book </ref> The same year, she became a consultant for the Pontifical Council for the Family headed by Cardinal Lopez-Trujillo. In 1998, Boutin became somewhat famous because of a five-hour speech in opposition to the PACS domestic partnership plan, arguing that its adoption by the government would encourage homosexuality.<ref>[1] Template:Dead link</ref> She held a Bible during the speech, an image which would later become associated with her.

In 2002, Boutin who had been a member of the UDF party, joined the UMP when it was founded. In a UMP rally that same year, where Boutin spoke, ACT UP Paris protested with a banner calling Boutin homophobic.<ref>RFI – France: présidentielle 2002 – Du 26 janvier au 1er février. Rfi.fr (26 January 2002). Retrieved 24 December 2012.</ref>

In 2006, Boutin supported the "global license" flat-fee authorization for sharing of copyrighted files over the Internet in a heated parliamentary debate on the DADVSI law.<ref>copyright law voted amid turmoil, Libération (1 July 2006) Template:In lang</ref> She also has been an advocate for a guaranteed minimum income,<ref>Bill proposal for a minimal living income. assemblee-nationale.fr (25 March 2003) Template:In lang</ref> as well as expanded housing rights (Droit au logement).<ref>Law proposition on housing right. assemblee-nationale.fr (28 September 2005) Template:In lang</ref> She has considered the situation of prisons in France to be a scandal and has argued for a drastic reduction of inmates as well as improving their life-conditions.Template:Citation needed

In December 2006, Boutin announced that she would not be a candidate for the 2007 French Presidential election and pledged her support for the Conservative candidate Nicolas Sarkozy.<ref>France 2 news (2 December 2006).</ref>

In a November 2006 interview, published in 2007, Boutin stated that President of the United States George W. Bush might have been behind the September 11 attacks.<ref>Bush behind 9/11, says French politician, Northern Territory News (7 July 2007).</ref><ref>Christine Boutin et le 11 Septembre Template:Webarchive. Video of interview by Karl Zéro Template:In lang</ref> When asked if she believed that the Bush administration was behind the 9/11 attacks, Boutin replied: "I think that it's possible... I think it is possible. I think it more especially as I know that the sites that speak of this problem are the sites that have the greatest numbers of visits.... And so, I tell myself, I who am extremely sensitive ... to the new techniques of information and communication, that this expression of the mass of the people cannot be without any truth. I'm not telling you that I adhere to that position, but let's say that, nevertheless, I'm questioning myself a bit on this question."<ref>« Je pense que c'est possible... je pense que c'est possible. Je le pense d'autant plus que je sais que les sites qui parlent de ce problème sont des sites qui ont les plus gros taux de visites. Et donc je me dis, moi qui suis très sensibilisée au problème des nouvelles techniques de l'information et de la communication, que cette expression de la masse et du peuple ne peut pas être sans aucune vérité. Donc je ne te dis pas que j'adhère à cette posture, mais disons que je m'interroge quand même un petit peu sur cette question. »
"Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 18 May 2007, after Sarkozy's victory in the presidential election, Boutin was named Minister of Housing and the City in the government of Prime Minister François Fillon.<ref>Communiqué de la Présidence de la République concernant la composition du gouvernement de M. François FILLON, Premier ministre. Template:Webarchive, Élysée Palace, 18 May 2007.</ref> She has taken as advisors the anti-abortion activist Christine de Chefdebien, controversial for a 1992 anti-abortion occupation of a hospital,<ref>L'Humanité, "COMMANDO-ANTI-IVG-LE-PROCUREUR COMMANDO ANTI-IVG: LE PROCUREUR DEMANDE 4 MOIS AVEC SURSIS". humanite.fr (4 September 1992) Template:In lang Template:Dead link</ref> and the priest Jean-Marie Petitclerc.

Boutin has a liberal view on condom use in Africa to prevent AIDS, saying that contraceptives were necessary, appearing to contradict an earlier view by Pope Benedict XVI. She has however been critical of contraception outside of the AIDS context in Africa.<ref>Le préservatif est "nécessaire" (Boutin). AFP via Lefigaro.fr (19 March 2009). Retrieved 24 December 2012.</ref> In October 2012, Christine Boutin stated that she remained strongly opposed to same-sex marriage, claiming that it would lead to polygamy. Around the same time, it was also revealed that she received €800,000 from the UMP before deciding not to run for the forthcoming presidential election against its candidate, Nicolas Sarkozy.<ref>Boutin : "Un lien entre le mariage homo et la polygamie" – Europe1.fr – L'interview de Bruce Toussaint. Europe1.fr (4 October 2012). Retrieved 24 December 2012.</ref> On a tweet of 14 May 2013 she derided Angelina Jolie's cancer prevention treatment as a sex reassignment procedure;<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> her tweet was widely criticized, but she has not apologized.

In 2014, Christine Boutin launched the "Force Vie" list for the 2014 European elections,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and failed to secure the 3% of votes required for reimbursement of campaign expenses in any constituency.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In a judgement dated 18 December 2015 the correctional court of Paris condemned Boutin to a fine of €5000 and €2000 for legal damages for having said that homosexuality was an abomination. The verdict is being appealed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In the second round of the 2017 French presidential election, she supported Marine Le Pen.<ref name="lefigcontremacronjevoterailepen">Template:Cite news</ref>

In 2022, Christine Boutin announced that she was supporting Éric Zemmour and had joined Reconquête.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Political functions

Governmental function

Minister of Housing and Urban : 2007–2009.

Electoral mandates

National Assembly of France

Member of the National Assembly of France for Yvelines : 1986–2007 (Became minister in 2007). Elected in 1986, reelected in 1988, 1993, 1997, 2002, 2007.

General Council

President of the General Council of Yvelines (interim) : May–July 2009.

Vice-president of the General Council of Yvelines : 1994–2009 (Resignation). Reelected in 2001, 2008.

General councillor of Yvelines : 1982–2009 (Resignation). Reelected in 1988, 1994, 2001, 2008.

Municipal Council

Mayor of Auffargis : 1980–1983.

Municipal councillor of Auffargis : 1977–1983

Deputy-mayor of Rambouillet : 1983–2001. Reelected in 1989, 1995.

Municipal councillor of Rambouillet : 1983–2001. Reelected in 1989, 1995.

See also

• Reconquête
• Pro-life movement