Attilio Fontana and Francesco Rocca
Regionals 2023, from Lombardy (Fontana) to Lazio (Rocca): the test in the center-right
The regionals of 12 and 13 February, according to the general sentiment, shouldn’t represent a problem for the victory of the centre-rightindeed it is Fountain (Lombardy) That Rocca (Lazio) they are in the lead and the contenders Majorino and D’Amato are well spaced and this is thanks to the “long wave” effect of the victory in September 2022.
So, more than anything, this electoral commitment appears to be an internal test for the majority. After the fateful 100 days an initial trajectory of what will be political action in the legislature has been outlined. What we have seen so far from Giorgia Meloni has been a rather timid financial institutionfocused on the mitigation of energy costs and a clear and decisive position on justice, with the great image success for the arrest of Matteo Messina Denaro, the hard line on Cospitothe defense of life imprisonment and of the 41-bis, also in contrast with the ally Berlusconi.
Instead, on the foreign front, the action has been more incisive and based on a meritorious attempt to strengthen Italy’s image, gaining credit with Brussels and engaging in a showdown with Paris, actions all played on the Ukrainian chessboard. The “anomaly” of the centre-right government is clearly that it has an Atlanticist and pro-European leader with an ally, Salvini, a sovereign and pro-Russian ally, and the other, Berlusconi, a personal friend of Putin.
In reality, Meloni is also a sovereignist and until recently, before the conquest of power, close to Russia like her allies.
But, as is known, Italy is not governed unless Washington and Brussels like it, and the rest is consequential.
Regionals 2023, from government reshuffle rumors to risks for Giorgia Meloni
That said, the upcoming regional ventures will serve to regulate the internal relations of the majority with some hypothesis of reshuffling in the event of changes in the internal balance of power. Some voices say that the Minister of the Environment Pichetto Fratin (in Forza Italia) and the Minister of Health Schillaci could be at riska technician, who however someone reproaches for having been a councilor appointed by Roberto Speranza. But the game is not played on names but on rolesin the sense mentioned, i.e. if there are significant changes in the balance of power compared to six months ago something could change, otherwise not. In this internal competition, however, the one who risks the most is Meloni to whom the voters could attribute the discrepancy between what she said before about Europe and what she does nowbut – at the same time – his Atlantic loyalty is a guarantee for his government that otherwise he would risk the thunderbolts of the EU on the PNRR which is fundamental for Italy and would have trouble with the Americans and NATO.
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