Centre-left in Liguria, story of a perfect suicide.
How is it possible to go from an eight-point lead in the polls in twenty days to a gap that today (even in polls prohibited because we are in the guarantee period) would appear to be six points and does not appear recoverable, despite an excellent candidate like Andrea Orlando?
Of course, the fact that the name of Marco Bucci, champion and steamroller, came out of the top hat of Edoardo Rixi, Matteo Salvini and Giorgia Meloni, while both within Fratelli d’Italia and Noi Moderati there were those who thought to a candidacy for the presidency in absolute continuity with Giovanni Toti (not with his government results, mind you) which after the plea bargain is indigestible to many, even among those who had voted for him and who had followed him in the proclamation of absolute innocence. In short, textbook stuff on how to lose. And it is no coincidence that some of those who proposed this have lost every possible election imaginable over the years.
Right? Wrong? It’s like this, in politics the “right” is not a category and personally I would have preferred a more discreet role for Toti in the electoral campaign. The presentation of the book with Alessandro Sallusti, for example, would have been better if it had been done in twenty days. Just as it is clear that the photos of the mayor with the former president of the Region have offered assistance to the center-left which is short of arguments to play on the overlap between the two profiles. And reading social media these days is an exercise forbidden to the faint of heart. In short, perfect material for memes.
Then, just read the judicial papers and know that Bucci was never even investigated despite hundreds and thousands of intercepted phone calls to understand that it is just propaganda. And, when asked a specific question, on “TGN Today” with Matteo Cantile, Gilberto Volpara, Carlotta Nicoletti, Stefano Rissetto and Maurizio Michieli, Bucci explained to me: “The past is the past, now let’s look to the future”.
Just as I appreciated Bucci’s response yesterday to Cantile and Andrea Orlando: “I will certainly carry forward all the good things done by the previous council, even when I took office in the Municipality I carried forward some good things of the Doria council”.
After the plea deal, the idea of claiming continuity with the previous administration at this time would be crazy. And indeed we need to push on the accelerator, not live in reverse or long for the good old times. Right or wrong, I repeat.
In short, in the centre-right, what makes the difference in this gap that is getting longer every day is called Marco Bucci.
But here today we are dealing with the centre-left, which, I repeat, fields a good person like Andrea Orlando and also excellent candidates in the various lists: I am thinking for example of Marco Ansaldo and Lilia Bonicioli in the presidential candidate’s civic body.
But what we are seeing in recent days is precisely the textbook of what should not be done in the electoral campaign: from the exploitation of Marco Bucci’s words on the family and the use of the word fascism beyond the modest quantity. Classic cases of lack of better arguments. We’ll talk about it in the next few days.
But, above all, after the choice of Elly Schlein – the one truly responsible for this collapse of the center-left and its candidate for president – to sacrifice Andrea Orlando on the altar of Giuseppe Conte, the center-left coalition and Orlando himself began to speak only in themselves, to their world, without looking at the center.
And it is no coincidence that, little by little, all the moderates have run away from this maximalist caravanserai. And the former Action PDs certainly cannot be considered representatives of the moderates.
But just look at the farewells and the names to understand that, in fact, this center-left that supports Orlando has effectively expelled all the moderates. First of all, let’s get rid of the exes of Italia Viva. Rosario Amico, Manuela Arata and Claudio Regazzoni, and those who immediately said they weren’t there: Mauro Avvenente and Davide Falteri for Italia Viva and Federico Giacobbe for Azione, also an “area” entrepreneur like Tonino Gozzi and then off also Arianna Viscogliosi, who had also chosen to engage in the Italia Viva project anyway. And even at a national level, the Ligurian regional governments have massacred moderates: away from Italia Viva Isabella De Monte and Luigi Marattin; away from Azione Enrico Costa, Mara Carfagna, Mariastella Gelmini and Giusy Versace. A masterpiece.
And then away goes the former regional secretary of Action, the mayor of Casarza Ligure Giovanni Stagnaro, who had chosen to move to Italia Viva and thus explains “the reasons for a choice”. Stagnaro explains: “I joined Action because I believed and still believe in a popular, liberal and reformist political force. The third pole for me and for many was a perspective that contributed to building a home for all those who see in the greatest ideal experiences, which made Italy great and prosperous in the post-war period, a solid and safe haven. Unfortunately this project has failed to date. But this necessity remains. Intact and even more necessary, a center even within the ranks. The Ligurian electoral campaign clearly demonstrates this. I have tried, in all the appropriate places and as far as possible, to create the conditions to unite all the popular, liberal, pro-European and reformists in a single list. It was not possible due to choices desired by real power plays. The same power games which, even more seriously, prevented a group of people from Italia Viva, honest, competent and representing the entire Ligurian territory from presenting themselves in the regional elections despite having already concluded and signed everything that was necessary. This is incredible. The choice of presidential candidate Orlando to submit to Conte’s purging requests unfortunately demonstrates that in that coalition, as it is formed today, there is no space for those, like me, who believe in a moderate policy, which looks at the problems to be solved, which starts from the territories and places freedom and the person at the centre. This is why I decided to join Italia Viva. I still believe that there is a need for a popular, democratic, liberal and reformist centre. As Mayor in these nine years I have learned, in the field, that problems have no political color and have no need for demagogy and populism to be solved. I invite all those who have expressed support and strength to me to vote for the best proposal for Liguria. Italia Viva has left the vote free and will not take an official position. Personally I believe that the candidacy of my colleague Mayor Marco Bucci can represent, in the current conditions, greater and better possibilities for the infrastructural, economic and social development that our territory strongly needs, a fragile but resilient territory made up of coast and hinterland which must have fair representation and equal dignity. Bucci demonstrated his skills on the field even in very difficult moments for his city.”
Well, I think these words explain a lot of what happened. And because the center-left has literally thrown away (as well as an excellent candidate like Andrea Orlando) a victory that already seemed within its grasp.
When you only talk to those who already live on slogans and muscular bipolarism, given that elections are won at the centre, it is clear that you then lose.
It didn’t take a genius to make this disaster, Elly did it.
