Italians went to the polls yesterday to cast their votes in a general election. As expected, the vote swung dramatically in favor of the immigration-critical Euroskeptics on the right. The coalition of center-right parties led by Silvio Berlusconi and Matteo Salvini came out on top (about 37%), edging out Beppe Grillo’s Five Star Movement (about 35%). The governing center-left Democratic Party was severely damaged, falling under 20%. However, the rightist coalition fell short of the number of seats necessary to form a government, so Italy will face a period of jockeying and jostling as the different factions try to take power.
Within the center-right coalition, the Lega Nord (Matteo Salvini’s party) came in ahead of Forza Italia (Silvio Berlusconi’s Party), which makes Mr. Salvini the man of the hour in Italy. Vlad looked through his “Matteo Salvini’s Greatest Hits” file, and suggested the following video from last month for re-posting.
Thanks once again to Elle Bowlly for the translation, and to Vlad Tepes for the subtitling:
Some tidbits of election news from Italy:
The ruling Democratic Party, led by Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, saw almost half of its ministers lose their seats in parliament:
Interior Minister Marco Minniti, Defence Minister Roberta Pinotti, Culture Minister Dario Franceschini and Mezzogiorno Minister Claudio De Vincenti lost out.
Premier Paolo Gentiloni, Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan, Cabinet Secretary Maria Elena Boschi, Sports Minister Luca Lotti and Civil Service Minister Marianna Madia won.
After the election Matteo Salvini made some acerbic remarks about Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European Commission:
Milan, March 5 — Anti-migrant Euroskeptic League leader Matteo Salvini on Monday said he hoped European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker would remain at the EC helm for as short a time as possible. “I thank Juncker for the words he said in the election campaign (against populism), because the more he speaks the more votes we get. Let’s hope he stays president of the European Commission for the shortest time possible”.
Finally, voter fraud in Canada may have played a role in yesterday’s Italian election:
(ANSA) — Rome, March 5 — Rome prosecutors on Monday opened a probe into possible ballot-rigging in Italian votes from Canada in Sunday’s general election. The probe as yet has posited no charges, judicial sources said. The probe was opened after reports from several diplomatic offices, the sources said.
Video transcript:
| 00:49 | If the Nigerian man under investigation for the murder of Pamela [Mastropietro] | |
| 00:53 | gets sentenced to four years of imprisonment, he won’t even see jail. | |
| 00:57 | According to any sane person, does this aid peace, serenity and co-existence | |
| 01:03 | or does it lead to social conflict? I condemn any type of senseless violence, | |
| 01:09 | but I also condemn this government which perhaps actually seeks out this violence. | |
| 01:13 | Perhaps the Democratic Party is in need of covering its nothingness | |
| 01:16 | by trying to get a reaction out of Italians. And to approve a “thief-saving” [new | |
| 01:20 | penitentiary reform] and “jail-emptying” amendment in such a time as this seems to me | |
| 01:24 | to be truly foolish and irresponsible. —But if you blame [Luca] Traini’s acts | |
| 01:29 | on this government’s immigration policies…isn’t this condoning… | |
| 01:33 | Responsibility is always a personal matter. You don’t go out on the streets | |
| 01:36 | to assault, hit, threaten or shoot people who are passing by, full stop. —You’re saying | |
| 01:39 | out-of-control immigration leads to social clash? —Yes, I’ve said this for years. | |
| 01:43 | —Isn’t this just an attempt to exploit fear? —No, it’s an attempt to solve problems | |
| 01:47 | and throw water on fire. If there were no illegals dealing drugs on our streets, | |
| 01:54 | we’d have fewer crimes and fewer problems, obviously. I want to solve problems. | |
| 01:58 | I take notice of the fact that recent governments’ immigration policies have | |
| 02:02 | multiplied these problems. —So that makes people go out and shoot on the streets? | |
| 02:06 | I mean, what’s the link, in your opinion? —Maybe I don’t speak Italian very well. | |
| 02:10 | Watch my lips: it’s not correct, just or humane. It’s criminal to assault, hit, beat up, | |
| 02:18 | threaten or shoot people passing by on the street, full stop, new paragraph. | |
| 02:23 | —And what do the government’s policies have to do with it? —Full stop, new paragraph. | |
| 02:28 | A conviction is on the way. Full stop, new paragraph. Phrase number two: | |
| 02:32 | Does out-of-control immigration aid social peace or does it lead to social conflict, question | |
| 02:38 | mark? Phrase number three: other than filling jails, out-of-control immigration risks to | |
| 02:45 | trigger a violent response (though never justified) because the matter should be controlled. | |
| 02:51 | I want to govern in order to control immigration. —And to close mosques? Isn’t this why | |
| 02:55 | you’re here? —And to close mosques…illegal mosques. I want to know who’s financing | |
| 03:02 | them and who’s behind them, where the money comes from, who preaches and what | |
| 03:05 | he preaches. Because it’s a matter of fact that a literal interpretation of the Quran… | |
| 03:11 | (which unfortunately isn’t a text subject to interpretation, as in other religions, anyway)… | |
| 03:16 | But it’s the word of the prophet. A woman is worth less than a man, Islamic law supersedes | |
| 03:22 | Italian law and freedom of thought is limited by what the Quran provides for. | |
| 03:27 | Therefore, I don’t want people settling in my house who believe that a woman | |
| 03:31 | is worth less than a man. —Art.19 of the Constitution is for freedom of religion for everyone. | |
| 03:39 | —Yes, I repeat. However, I’ve never had problems with freedom of religion for anyone. | |
| 03:44 | One can freely be Christian, Jew, Waldensian, Buddhist, Protestant… | |
| 03:48 | The problem with Islam is that it is a law, not a religion. Because they impose laws in the | |
| 03:54 | name of a god which I think are incompatible with our values, rights and freedoms. | |
| 03:59 | —What about this specific mosque, which is in a somewhat disgusting area anyway? | |
| 04:04 | —Well, if there’s a fundamentalist Islamic regime behind them, financing them… | |
| 04:10 | Why do I have to have a settlement from an extremist Islamic country in the heart of Umbria? | |
| 04:17 | Which leads to… —Do you know that for a fact? —There are funds from Qatar. | |
| 04:21 | It’s no mystery. I don’t have intelligence service data. I told Berlusconi “no” on | |
| 04:26 | condoning illegal constructions, and I reiterate “no” on initiatives of this kind | |
| 04:32 | (for which many open investigations are currently going on). |
Hat tip for the articles: Insubria.
I love how the stupid reporter was asking his stupid leftist questions. This is a politician who has his head on his shoulders and he speaks the truth.
Empty the jails of non Italians and deport them back to where they came from. That would save money to then be used to help the poor/unemployed…of Italy.
Look after your own people. FIRST…
I would love to share the same enthusiasm about Salvini, but the subject is committed to Vladimir Putin, a guy I’ve been keen to expose in other comments as a bastard and a financier of terrorism as it is. I think that losers are the real patriotic, because they are dependent on this type of politician, who instead of fleeing from one scheme of power allies to another.
Salvini wants to solve problems! That is a revolutionary idea for a politician. We need more of it, a lot more.