Berlusconi's tax fraud appeal hearing date set too early?

Wednesday, 10 July 2013. A decision by the Court of Cassation – which sets for as early as 30 July Silvio Berlusconi's tax fraud appeal hearing – gets Italy's political life in turmoil ignited also by newspapers' aggressive headlines.

"State bandits"

“State bandits” reads Berlusconi's family newspaper Il Giornale (“The Newspaper”) today's headline with a list of evidence items (34 trials, 0 definitive sentences, and so on), showing how ballistic the former prime minister intends to go in his fighting the 20 Year's War against the Italian judiciary, which is guilty of having anticipated the appeal hearings, (allegedly) in order to avoid any risk of statute of limitations that might influence some of the charges in September.

Mr Berlusconi's entourage – amongst them the newspaper's editor Allesandro Sallusti - obviously counted on the fact that the media tycoon would by saved by the bell (namely the statue of limitation).

“Bandits are going to shoot not only at President Berlusconi but at the whole PdL [People of Freedom party] to seize what remains of the country”, states newspaper founded by Indro Montanelli (and now owned by Paolo Berlusconi, brother of Silvio), citing a handful of possible culprits, the newspaper Corriere della Sera, a couple of banks like Banca Intesa and Mediobanca, automaker Fiat and his boss Sergio Marchionne, shoemaker Diego Della Valle.

The decision of the court – defined “astonishing” by Berlusconi's lawyers – is just one of the threats coming from the judiciary, in the wake of a heavy 7-year sentence for power abuse and sex with a minor, received by the former PM of Italy in the end of the Rubycase, the inquiry that got its name from former under-age nightclub dancer Karima El Mahroug, also known as "Ruby the Heartstealer".

The Cassation - in the person of its president Giorgio Santacroce - denies any "Speedy Gonzales attitude" and stets that "senator Berlusconi" has been treated just like anyone else.

So, you might think, the Democratic Party (PD), sworn enemy of Silvio Berlusconi, will celebrate the news the about the legal troubles chasing him... Not quite so. The PD, after a pretty controversial internal vote, desiced to join the PdL and stop the functioning of the govern for 24 hour, in response of the court's decision.

Daniela Santanchè - staunch defender of Silvio Berlusconi and girfriend of Il Giornale's editor Alessandro Sallusti, boasting of a T-shirt that reads "We are all whores"
(Francesca Pascale and Mariarossi are game too)

Silvio Berlusconi's fans are trying anything in order to show their support: demonstrate, release interviews, declare that they are all whores.

In the meanwhile Beppe Grillo met up with Head of State Giorgio Napolitano (an accomplice of the bandits, according to Il Giornale) and told him that the “nation is a pressure cooker” and “people are ready with their guns and we are trying to stop them”.

Where is all this going to lead? For a start, most probably the coalition government will fall – a good old habit of Italian politics – and then... time will tell.