The Decline of the 5 Star Movement in the Italian Government (#20233) Author: Massimo Franco 1 Journalist, Italy
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Campaign A New Dawn in Politics! The Decline of the 5 Star Movement in the Italian Government (#20233) Author: Massimo Franco 1 Journalist, Italy Government Party 22/03/2019 - 09:57 | Discussion Description: The 5 Star Movement is officially in Purgatory: the triumph of 4 March 2018 seems unrepeatable and the judicial inquiries in Rome are only the corollary of this progressive disintegration. The Five Star Government Movement officially entered Purgatory: in the ambiguous space of parliamentary majorities, even numerically uncertain; voting on ministers rescued from trials thanks to the help of Giorgia Meloni and Silvio Berlusconi, described as unpresentable but welcome as a crutch; and of surveys that show how the triumph of 4 March a year ago is a mirage today unrepeatable. The judicial inquiries that also affect members of the "grillismo" in Rome are only the corollary of this progressive disintegration, and perhaps deeper than it appears. They reveal the side of a possible corruption, destabilizing for the Manichaean identity of the Movement, based on a self-perception of moral superiority. And they sharpen the contradictions, comparing the "acquittal" in the Senate of Matteo Salvini, a cumbersome Showing Page 1 out of 3 but indispensable League ally, and the expulsion-flash of the President of the Capitoline Assembly, Grillo, Vito Marcello De Vito, after his arrest. In short, two behaviors on the same day. Add to this the official defense of the Minister of Infrastructure, Danilo Toninelli, yesterday in the hall of Palazzo Madama, the purgatory picture is even clearer. To give him visibility is the striking of the League, which left the Five Stars alone at the stalls of the government, except for a fleeting final appearance of a couple of ministers. With the vaguely grotesque touch of Toninelli, who to contest the PD's request for no confidence concluded the intervention claiming the "portable plaque" that it will introduce for the happiness of motorists. Against the background of this chipped fresco, one can see the outlines of the vice premier Luigi Di Maio and the mayor of Rome, Virginia Raggi. One can see, because all the moves of these days and hours have been made to protect its profile; to separate their responsibilities from any act that casts doubt on their integrity and capacity: although the list begins to lengthen, nationally and locally, with yesterday's survey of Ray's councilor, Daniele Frongia, who has suspended himself. Palazzo Chigi and the Campidoglio appear united by a single destiny, which is that of the Movement and its "ruling" leaders. They cannot and must not fall, because otherwise the scaffolding set up by Casaleggio Associati and its representatives strategically scattered in the ganglia of the power of the 5 Star Movement would collapse. And yet, it is difficult to escape the feeling that the greater strength of the yellow-green executive has taken a descending slope difficult to ascend. It blends Di Maio's leadership crisis with the credibility not only of its miraculous proposals, but also of its ability to offer an alternative strategy to Italy. The hope of the voters to "prove the novelty" of the Five Stars, after the disappointing results of the previous governments, begins to weaken. Certainly there is no going back, but the M5S does not seem able to go much further: if not in tow of that Salvini who proposes an agenda "grillina" exclusively in the anti-system and anti-European impulses. The speed with which it tends to burn its leaders, real or in pectore, assimilates the Movement to the parties from which it wants to mark diversity. Alessandro Di Battista, after his Guatemalan sabbatical, passed from the role of electoral reserve to that of desaparecido used and set aside in a few weeks. And not everyone is ready to bet on the future of Di Maio, although it is considered among the best. But the question is whether, apart from the individual leaders, the Five Stars will have a future that is not a retreat in the old minority enclosure: in the Paradise of the opposition without responsibility. The price he is paying is obvious. It oscillates between a realpolitik made of compromises difficult to justify if not in the name of power, and the primordial instincts that combine justicialism, third worldism, palingenetic pretensions, and presumption: a toxic mixture in the face of a situation that is already complex for anyone who governs. As for the price for Italy, there is a fear that the majority is following a path opposite to the one that leads out of the crisis. It is not just the effect of a preconception, but the revenge of reality on a desire for change entrusted to a "new" ephemeral and unrealistic, exposed to the infiltration of business committees. Showing Page 2 out of 3 Time to Implement: 1 month - 6 months Impact: 50% Relevant links/articles: The Decline of the 5 Star Movement - Corriere della Sera OLD NID: 3007 Associated Users Evaluating users: User Date Overall Rating Max Nardotto 22/03/2019 - 10:17 5 Showing Page 3 out of 3.