Why nobody likes Silvio Berlusconi?

Thursday, December 13, 2012. French President François Hollande joins droves of politicians eager to state their disapproval over Silvio Berlusconi. Whatever he does or will do, nobody likes it.

Mr Holland, while speaking publicly in Brussels (see photo), declared he saw “very low chance“ for the “chevalier” (Berlusconi is a Labour's Knight, having been awarded the Order of Merit for Labour) of winning a term and replacing Mario Monti as head of Italian government.

"Now, look at you" seems to say François Hollande

"I don't take his words saying he abandoned his candidature seriously. What he says one day is not necessarily true the day after," Hollande added, clearly stating his stance towards the Italian media magnate “re-entering the field”. In this stance Hollande does not show any improvement in the relationship with Berlusconi, compared to Nicolas Sarkozy's days (watch the video on our YouTube's Berluschannel).

Silvio Berlusconi and the broader moderate alliance

Wednesday, December 12, 2012. Silvio Berlusconi makes a U-turn and declares willingness to back Mario Monti in case of the creation of a broader moderate alliance to beat Italian left-wingers.

Mario Monti, the guy Berlusconi a few days ago dubbed as “beholden to Germany”, acting as a quasi-accomplice of Angela Merkel to try to "topple a majority government elected by the Italians” by using a scam (the spread-scam), leading a government that brought Italy to “the brink of the abyss” is now the favourite candidate of the Italian media tycoon? Can you believe that? Berlusconi is forcing Mario Monti to resign in order to vote for Monti as a Prime Minister?

Yet another brainwave? Or just going nuts?

Italian former Prime Minister took the occasion of a public event – the televised presentation of start TV anchorman Bruno Vespa's latest book – to inform the public of the last of his U-turn. Mr Berlusconi said the he "proposed to Monti to be the candidate as leader for the moderate centre coalition and he said he didn't want to. If his position changes, I would have no problem with stepping back ... I have no personal ambitions".

Silvio Berlusconi and the spread-scam used to try to bring down a majority government elected by the Italians

Monday, December 10, 2012. Taking part in Canale 5's “La Telefonata” (“The Phone Call”) TV programme, Silvio Berlusconi explains to the Italians that Italy's bond yield difference with Germany's Bunds is a scam they should not worry about.

Berlusconi with alleged girlfriend Francesca Pascale

Canale 5 ("Channel 5") is a television network controlled by Berlusconi's Mediaset broadcasting company, Maurizio Belpietro is a staunch defender of the Italian Prime Minister candidate arguably the best place to address to the Italians (at least to those who aren't at work, in that time in the morning) in order to lure them to vote, once again, for the billionaire.

Belpietro - former editor of Berlusconi's Il Giornale newspaper - is the host of the La Telefonata ("The Phone Call"), a 10-minute-long TV programme where he gets a phone call, as the show title hints. Today the Italian Silvio telephoned. La Telefonata is on air at 8:40 (GTM 7:40)

“Let's stop talking about this scam!” stated this morning Il Cavaliere's voice, “one year ago nobody heard about the word “spread” he continued “that was used to try to bring down a majority government elected by the Italians”.

“Behind the crisis there has been a German strategy” Berlusconi added, and Prime Minister Mario Monti is beholden to Germany. Monti replaced Berlusconi as Italy's Prime minister in November 2011, when the spread between Italy's bond yield and Germany's Bunds reached a euro-era record of 575.6 basis points.

He knows what is needed

The way for Italy's salvation is through the restoration Forza Italia (Go Italy!), the party that Silvio Berlusconi created in 1994 when he "entered the field" the first time, its alliance with the Lega Nord (Northern League) led by Robert Maroni (in the meanwhile Berlusconi friend Umberto Bossi was swept away by a corruption scandal) and – most probably – the separation from the National Alliance party.

After the PdL withdraw it's support for Monti's government and the former European Commissioner declared his willingness to resign as soon as, general elections are expected to be held either Feb. 17 or Feb. 24 (about a month before originally planned).

Is Italy back to square one, or it just sounds like that?

Silvio Berlusconi gets angry (and decides to get back to politics)

Saturday, October 27, 2012. Silvio Berlusconi does an about-turn: he will not leave politics, because he must reform the judiciary first. And he might end support for Monti's government as well. And he is still very angry at Merkel-Sarkozy, you know why...

An angry Silvio Berlusconi

The recent sentence by a Milan's tribunal in the Mediaset-trial – last Friday Silvio Berlusconi was condemned to four years in jail, diminished to only one year thank to a tax fraud official remission – irritated the former Italian prime minister to such an extent, that he burst out talking nonsense, as usual, using its powerful media machinery.

Silvio Berlusconi and the chat among friends

Sunday, October 23, 2011. After meeting Silvio Berlusconi on Italy's commitments, Germany's Merkel and France's Sarkozy are asked about how reassuring was the threesome.

Are they talking about him?

On October 15 Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi won a confidence vote by a very narrow majority.

On October 23, eight days later, he had to inspire some confidence in the Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy, who summoned him (needing a true commitment from Italy, in order to try and solve the euro zone crisis), just before a European Council summit in Brussels.

Merkel, Sarkozy and Berlusconi

«I was convincing», declared afterwards Silvio Berlusconi «I have never failed to make the grade», showing how he considered the whole thing as just getting a reproach from the headmaster.

During the following press conference, a French-speaking journalist asked the duo about their level of trust in the Italian politician by putting a question on how much they have been reassured by him.

«How to put it?» answered Nicolas Sarkozy, «We do have confidence in the sense of responsibility of Italy's political, financial and economic authorities as a whole.» whilst Mrs Merkel underscores that «It was a meeting among friends.». They just couldn't help giggling, revealing how funny they found Silvio Berlusconi.

But the video (in French) about the funny scene is revealing more than the mere words.

For Silvio Berlusconi, exams never end.

Silvio Berlusconi and his allies got "slapped in the face", again

Tuesday, June 13 2011. Italian Northern League's Roberto Calderoli states he's fed up with getting slapped in the face, as Silvio Berlusconi suffers the umpteenth defeat in a referendum.

Left-wingers celebrate victory in referendum

It's not a favourable period for Silvio Berlusconi. And it's not a favourable period for his allies. After the crushing local election defeat at the end of May – when both PdL (The People of Freedom) and Northern League reckoned a huge loss in votes – in last weekend Italians mass participation represented another overwhelming setback for the prime minister.

Calderoli (right) with Northern League's leader Umberto Bossi

Even though Berlusconi has downplayed the significance of the vote, Roberto Calderoli, member of the Senate of Italy and Minister for Legislative Simplification, is the one to speak out for his party: they are tired of being involved in Silvio's defeats.

In 2009 Silvio Berlusconi picked as one of his favourite pieces the resumption of nuclear power programme. Unluckily for him, just three months before the referendum, a huge earthquake – and an even more devastating tsunami – stroke Japan, creating one of the most serious incidents in the history of nuclear power in Fukushima. The final outcome of the incident still needs to be fully evaluated.

It's been relatively easy for the anti-nuclear movement – particularly strong in Italy – to reach (and exceed) the legal number of 50% of the voters plus one (indications shows that around 57% of the electorate took part in the referendum). Greenpeace called it a historic result, it comes few weeks after German chancellor Angela Merkel declared that Germany will cast nuclear power plants by 2022.

Actually Berlusconi tried anything in order to undermine the referendum results. Amongst his moves, he temporarily shelved his initiative for new power plants, then appealed against the referendum, saying that it was no longer needed (and hoping to avoid the defeat in the other three questions). But he did not succeed. Few days before the referendum – on June 7 – the Constitutional Court unanimously voted to let the referendum go ahead.

Bossi and Berlusconi: a friendship coming to an end?

And – as the prime minister knew already – it tuned out top become a major defeat for the forces of the Italian cabinet. The overwhelming majority (almost 95% of the voters) voted in favour of the four questions, related to the nuclear power, to the privatisation of water (two questions, voting “yes” meant saying rejecting it), and abrogation of the “legitimate impediment” (which allows the prime minister and cabinet ministers to avoid criminal trial's hearings).

Today the Rubygate trial will resume: other slaps in the offing?

Video from our YouTube Channel: Berluschannel 

Berlusconi call puts Angela Merkel (and a Nato summit) on hold.

Saturday, 4 April 2009. Baden-Baden (Germany), along the Rhine river. The Italian politician-entrepreneur Berlusconi keeps hanging the Nato summit host Angela Merkel whilst talking on the phone.

President Berlusconi this time holds up the start of a NATO summit and keeps hanging the Chancellor of Germany, who's receiving the guests of the meeting. He gets off his car, Angela Merkel's looking forward to greet him and shake hands with him, but Silvio just can't hang the phone (as he explains, with clear gestures to the host of the meeting. Once again, funny stuff from Berlusconi).

Video from our YouTube Channel: Berluschannel

Nato leaders then cross the pedestrian bridge over the Rhine - with Merkel and Obama in front line - in order to meet France's President Sarkozy.

Believe it or not, Silvio is on the phone, whilst strolling around. And the puzzled Mrs Merkel has to start the event's opening ceremony without Italy's Berlusconi.

Over the telephone

In his defence, the Italian Prime Minister was talking to Mr Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (Turkey's Prime Minister) and the call was pertinent to the summit, but we can assume he could have found a way to manage it in a snappier way.

Couldn't he?