WASHINGTON — A firebrand State Department political appointee proposed using American taxpayer money to support French far-right leader Marine Le Pen as she appeals her embezzlement conviction, according to two State Department officials.
U.S. President Donald Trump and his allies have joined far-right politicians in Europe in condemning Le Pen’s conviction in March as politically motivated. Le Pen, one of Europe’s most recognizable anti-immigrant euroskeptics, has turned her party into a mainstream political force over the past decade and was polling as the frontrunner for France’s 2027 presidential election before her guilty verdict.
The two officials, who were granted anonymity because they are not authorized to speak publicly about internal State Department discussions and fear reprisals from department leadership, said a senior adviser within the State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor named Samuel Samson made the initial funding recommendation this week after meeting with the leadership from Le Pen’s party, the National Rally, late last month.
Reuters was first to report conversations between Samson and National Rally leadership.
While no decision has been made on the recommendation, using funds allocated to promote human rights and combat authoritarian regimes to back the leader of an opposition party — especially one whose founders included Nazi collaborators — would be explosive, potentially undermining the nearly 250-year alliance between France and the United States.
A senior State Department official who saw the final document where Samson outlined recommendations said the claims were “flat out false.” That official was granted anonymity because they are not authorized to speak publicly on behalf of the department.
The National Rally did not immediately respond to POLITICO’s request for comment.
In terms of her conviction, Le Pen and her party were accused of illicitly using money from the European Parliament to pay for party employees who did not work on EU-related business, and the prosecution put forward several pieces of damning evidence during hundreds of hours of court proceedings. Le Pen’s legal team did not dispute the substance of the charges, instead arguing that the distinction between a politician’s work as a lawmaker and as a party member was artificial.
The controversy stems from the fact that the court gave Le Pen an immediate five-year ban on running for public office, which would knock her out of the 2027 presidential election barring a successful appeal.
Typically in France, defendants can have their punishment temporarily lifted by appealing a verdict, when they return to being presumed innocent. But the court made the rare — though not unprecedented — decision that Le Pen’s crimes were so grave and the risk of recidivism so high that her ban should be handed down immediately. Her appeal is slated for 2026.
Samson, a recent graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, according to his LinkedIn profile, is one of several young conservatives to join the State Department’s ranks since Trump’s return to the White House in January.
Earlier this year he wrote an article for the State Department Substack titled “The Need for Civilizational Allies in Europe” in which he waxed lyrical about natural law while calling on Europe to reclaim “Western heritage.”
Samson, like Secretary of State Marco Rubio, criticized Germany’s decision to label the far-right Alternative for Germany party as an “extremist” organization and reiterated Trump administration diatribes accusing Europe of cracking down on free speech rights. He also slammed pushback on “Christian nations” such as Hungary.
Samson’s efforts are reflective of the Trump administration’s efforts to support aligned political movements around the world and boost friendly governments. Trump administration officials have routinely chided Europe for overstepping in their efforts against the far right, while turning an eye to the human rights abuses of allies in El Salvador and Argentina.
The office in which Samson works, the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor was created to “advance American security by promoting respect for human rights, bolstering democratic institutions, empowering civil society, promoting and protecting freedom of expression and upholding internationally recognized worker rights.”
The department is expected to face significant layoffs as part of Rubio’s plans to overhaul the department, should those plans receive the green light from the Supreme Court.
Sarah Paillou in Paris and Clea Caulcutt in Brussels contributed to this report.
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