Newsgroup: it.politica
Titolo: Allies turn on Berlusconi after TV debate

Allies turn on Berlusconi after TV debate
By Crispian Balmer
ROME (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's hopes of  
retaining power were dealt a blow on Wednesday when two main allies  
criticised him for a lacklustre performance in a key TV debate before  
April national elections.
Four snap opinion polls said opposition leader Romano Prodi unexpectedly  
performed better than Berlusconi in a head-to-head confrontation on  
Tuesday that was watched by a massive audience of some 17 million  
Italians, roughly a third of the electorate.
Berlusconi's attempts to claim victory cut no ice with his centre-right  
partners who said he had failed to provide a clear vision of what his  
alliance wanted to achieve.
"I believe that yesterday was a missed opportunity," Pier Ferdinando  
Casini, head of the centrist Union of Christian Democrats party, told  
reporters.
Deputy Prime Minister Gianfranco Fini, who leads the conservative National  
Alliance party, was even more critical.
"(Berlusconi) gave the impression that all was well, as if he wanted to  
get top marks. That was excessive because many voters who are still  
undecided know that society still has many problems." Fini said in a  
statement.
The criticism underscored tensions inside the ruling coalition, with  
Berlusconi's allies unhappy over the prime minister's high campaign  
profile which has overshadowed their own efforts to engage voters.
Recent opinion polls have given Prodi's centre-left a lead of between 3.5  
and 5.0 percentage points against the centre-right, but with up to a  
quarter of voters still undecided the result of the April 9-10 elections  
remains in doubt.
NEGATIVE AND DEFENSIVE
Berlusconi had pushed hard for a TV debate with a reluctant Prodi, who is  
often a dour television performer, hoping that a direct confrontation  
would help him close the gap.
The prime minister unleashed a stream of statistics to defend his  
government's handling of the stagnant economy, ridiculed Prodi's answers  
and called the centre-left leader a "front man" for hard leftists within  
the opposition alliance.
But his tone was largely negative and defensive, while a smiling Prodi  
appeared more composed and upbeat.
"It seems to me we have not succeeded, at least as far as I am concerned,  
in giving Italians what they wanted to know," Berlusconi said in his  
closing comments, a rare admission of failure for a man famed for his  
sunny optimism.
Looking to regain the initiative, he later told reporters he had secured a  
clearcut victory, but the four opinion polls published on Wednesday said  
Prodi had won by a margin of between 1.2 percentage points to 7 points.
The two men will hold a second and final debate on April 3.
In the meantime, Berlusconi will have to try to heal the divisions within  
his own alliance, knowing voters are likely to punish any signs of  
disunity.
Fini said the centre-right would need to emerge from the vote "in a  
different (form), more capable of listening to ordinary people", while  
Casini said the electorate wanted to hear more about future plans rather  
than past achievements.
Tuesday's debate capped a bad week for Berlusconi during which Milan  
prosecutors sought to have him indicted in a corruption probe and his  
health minister, Francesco Storace, quit over a domestic political spying  
scandal.
"This debate was another step towards (Berlusconi's) defeat," said former  
centre-left Prime Minister Massimo D'Alema.
Reuters
-- 
Ralph Barker
L.A.P. Legionario Azzurro Pagante
L.I.P.C.S. Lega Italiana Protezione Carciofo Silvio
"Io al Pil non ci ho mai creduto, non l'ho mai incontrato per strada"
silvio berlusconi 10.09.2005

(Reuters) 

 wrote:

Povero Clas che finge di non capire un cas!
Il piduista craxiano, il ladrone della frequenze TV, il lavatore
trentennale dei soldi di mafia, è alla fine!
e
Leggete "L'amico degli amici" - tutte le prove che Dellutri è mafioso e fece da tramite per 30 anni tra Cosa Nostra e Berlusconi.

Leggete "L'amico degli amici" - tutte le prove che Dellutri è mafioso e fece da tramite per 30 anni tra Cosa Nostra e Berlusconi.
Leggete "Tutte la balle su Berlusconi"
Luciano
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Luciano
Sono le motivazioni con cui la CORTE DI ASSISE DI PALERMO ha
condananto dellutri quale "uomo al servizio di Cosa nostra" per avere
fatto da tramite per 30 anni tra mafia e berluscazzo.
e.
