{"id":228249,"date":"2019-08-26T20:46:30","date_gmt":"2019-08-27T00:46:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=228249"},"modified":"2019-08-26T20:46:30","modified_gmt":"2019-08-27T00:46:30","slug":"italian-opposition-leader-optimistic-coalition-can-formed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2019\/08\/26\/italian-opposition-leader-optimistic-coalition-can-formed\/","title":{"rendered":"Italian opposition leader ‘optimistic’ coalition can formed"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Earlier, Zingaretti told reporters that his previous meeting with Movement leader Luigi Di Maio was \u201cpositive.\u201d (File Photo<\/a>: @nzingaretti\/Twitter<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

ROME \u2014 The head of Italy’s opposition Democrats expressed optimism Monday a deal can be struck with the populist 5-Star Movement to form a new government of rivals that would keep right-wing leader Matteo Salvini out of power and possibly bring back the same premier who quit barely a week ago, reflecting the topsy-turvy state of the country’s politics.<\/p>\n

Late in the evening, Democratic Party chief Nicola Zingaretti headed back to Chigi Palace, the premier’s office, for talks with 5-Star Leader Luigi Di Maio as well as with caretaker Premier Giuseppe Conte, who quit his post last week after Salvini yanked his right-wing League’s support for the government.<\/p>\n

The huddle was reported to be still underway after midnight, several hours after Conte returned from the just-ended G-7 summit in France to begin discussions in Rome.<\/p>\n

Earlier, Zingaretti told reporters that his previous meeting with Movement leader Luigi Di Maio was \u201cpositive.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe we’re on the right path,\u201d Zingaretti said. \u201cWe had asked that we start off discussing ideas and content, and tonight we’ll go into details, I’m optimistic.\u201d<\/p>\n

The choice of who would become premier \u2014 possibly Conte again \u2014 has been looming as a major hurdle, especially since Zingaretti has been demanding that any new government break with the past.<\/p>\n

But Conte’s participation in the talks signalled he might head the government to replace the one that just collapsed, but instead of a 5-Star coalition with Salvini’s League party, the new coalition would forge an alliance with the Movement and the centre-left Democrats.<\/p>\n

Conte quit last week after Salvini, riding a wave of popularity, yanked support for the nearly 15-month-old government in a bid to trigger new elections the League leader bets will bring him the premiership.<\/p>\n

In announcing his resignation, Conte blamed his demise on the disloyalty of his right-wing Interior Minister Salvini and blasted the anti-migrant League leader’s blatant personal ambitions in sabotaging the coalition in pursuit of elections.<\/p>\n

Just ahead of the late night session, Zingaretti had evaded questions on whether Conte, a non-partisan who enjoys 5-Star support might be tapped to forge another coalition that this time shuts out Salvini and his nationalist League party.<\/p>\n

Italian President Sergio Mattarella has said that if by mid-week he doesn’t have guarantees a new coalition would give the country a lasting government, he’ll dissolve Parliament, triggering elections this fall, 3 1\/2 years ahead of time.<\/p>\n

Zingaretti said that just such a government is his goal.<\/p>\n

\u201cAssembling a government is a serious thing, we’re serious people,\u201d Zingaretti said. \u201cWe don’t want to form another one like the last one that collapsed after 14 months.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salvini, who only a few days ago dangled the possibility that he and Di Maio could cobble together a fresh coalition, almost sounded resigned Monday night that his power play to win new elections soon would be thwarted.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt seems like a government is being born with (the goal of) power being the only glue\u201d holding the would-be coalition together, Salvini told reporters. All that’s left to do for the Democrats and 5-Stars is the \u201cdivvying up of the ministries, the undersecretaries\u201d and so on.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe high road is voting,\u201d Salvini insisted. Any new government would be \u201cbetrayal of the popular will,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

A new government must win mandatory confidence votes in each of Parliament’s two chambers.<\/p>\n

Mattarella’s office announced that he would hold a second round of talks with party leaders, starting with the smallest parties in Parliament on Tuesday evening. Mattarella set aside Wednesday for longer closed-door sessions with the heads of the Democrats, the League and the 5-Stars.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ROME \u2014 The head of Italy’s opposition Democrats expressed optimism Monday a deal can be struck with the populist 5-Star …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":228250,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-228249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","category-news-w","mauthors-frances-demilio","mauthors-the-associated-press"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228249","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/44"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=228249"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228249\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":228251,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228249\/revisions\/228251"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/228250"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=228249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=228249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=228249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}