Could France have invaded the United States?

How would a French invasion of the United States have gone?

The army and fleet are predicted to suffer a disastrous defeat, while the Royal Navy watches without intervening.

A hypothetical French invasion is dismissed as a disaster for both the army and the fleet. The fleet is imagined being destroyed during the Atlantic crossing. The Royal Navy appears as an amused observer with no reason to intervene. The prediction is a joke about the invasion's prospects, without a detailed explanation of how it would unfold.