The markets have seized on the latest European deal with relief. But it’s another confection, and a humiliating one at that, write Glenn Dyer and Bernard Keane.
Silvio Berlusconi
Political snippets: Gillard’s looking prime ministerial
If her approval ratings do not improve because of it then Labor really will have reason to despair.
Maley: no more Italian dolce vita
As European leaders gathered in Brussels overnight in yet another attempt to stem the region’s worsening debt crisis, attention was focused on the key role that two Italians are now playing.
Guy Rundle: Europe and how a colony on the moon can save it
Europe is on the brink — and it’s a measure of how fast-moving the crisis is that I must add the phrase “at time of writing”.
€360b souvlaki in the back of the room refuses to go away
Europe should be preparing for an orderly default for Greece, with money to backstop banks and countries such as Spain, Italy, Belgium and even France. No other path of action is realistic any more.
Rome protest leaves a city of ‘broken dreams’
Hundreds of riot police with helmets, batons and tear-gas were ready for the slightest provocation and the mood was ominous as about 200,000 demonstrators were snaking down one of Rome’s main thoroughfares, writes Jo McKenna.
Eight is enough for Italy, as Berlusconi saga grows
Italy has been rocked by shocking new revelations this week about Berlusconi’s sexual digressions and political pundits around the world are once again asking themselves how long he can last, writes Josephine McKenna.
Political snippets: The Italian PM, his procurer and Rupert Murdoch
The businessman Gianpaolo Tarantini, who was the chief recruiter of the escorts for the “bunga bunga” parties hosted by the Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, has made a startling allegation against Rupert Murdoch.
Political snippets: Going early should suit Andrew Wilkie
The independent member for Denison is not man to joke
Berlusconi the ‘ATM’, and living in the land of ‘Pinocchio’…
Just when it seemed there was nothing else he could do to surprise us, the s-x scandal that has dogged Silvi Berlusconi for the past two years was explosively reignited, writes Josephine McKenna from Rome.
Italy: looking for friends in Libya
Friendship is notoriously fickle when it is forged between political leaders. No less so across the Mediterranean, writes Josephine McKenna from Rome.
So much for austerity as Italy drops further in the mire
When financial markets open today, Silvio Berlusconi will be at his luxurious villa on the Costa Smeralda in Sardinia, one step removed from the reaction to deficit-cutting measures he announced late last week, writes Jo McKenna, a Rome-based freelance journalist
Berlusconi’s devastating reign must come to an end. Soon.
Despite being fiscally incompetent and uninterested in the economy as a whole, Silvio Berlusconi has been in charge of one of the world’s economic powerhouses for years. His impact has been devastating not just for Italy but for Europe too, writes John Foot.
Italy on slide, Berlusconi quiet as he gets his bottom (line) pinched
Italy’s worst fears may now have been realised. After turbulent trading late last week, Italy’s financial markets slumped again on Monday, writes Josephine McKenna in Rome.
‘There has to be justice’: Italians deliver Berlusconi a slap
Italians voted emphatically against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi in four national referendums on Sunday. They’re fed up with the PM’s professional and personal behaviour, writes Jo McKenna from Rome.
Eurozone headaches: Greek credit rating cut, Berlusconi defeated
Europe is approaching one of those big points in history, courtesy of a broken, almost bankrupt Greece. Overnight Standard & Poor’s hammered one of the final nails in Greece’s coffin by slashing its credit rating to Triple C, two levels above default (bankrupt).
Berlusconi gets, err, routed … by political tsunami backlash
People partied into the wee hours after the unbelievable drubbing dished out to the Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi in the Milan’s local elections, writes Josephine McKenna in Rome.
Despite tickets on himself, Berlusconi takes a poll blow
Silvio Berlusconi has nothing to celebrate after this week’s local elections delivered a devastating blow to his leadership, writes Jo McKenna, a freelance journalist in Rome.
1000 women on menu and humiliated Berlusconi court in the act
Humiliation is a word that Silvio Berlusconi should use sparingly, writes Joe McKenna in Rome.
Berlusconi prostitution trial kicks off
The prostitution trial against Italian PM Silvio “bunga bunga” Berlusconi, in which the prosecution alleges Berlusconi paid an underage woman for sex then used dodgy techniques to try and cover it up, has officially began in Milan, with Berlusconi predicted to emerge victorious.
Political snippets: The danger in addressing rallies
Whenever I think back to John Hewson’s bold attempt to become Prime Minister with an honest policy to introduce a goods and services tax the image that comes to me mind is of the Opposition Leader standing on the tray of a truck shouting a speech at the gathered crowd.
Political snippets: Prime Ministerial grand tour overhshadowed by adviser remarks
Wanting others to appreciate your importance is a human enough failing for a political adviser and it was evident last night. Also, differences of opinion between the PM and her Foreign Minister over Libya and the latest Berlusconi news.
Political snippets: Keneally takes the bus for a spin
The NSW election race means the spinners will stop at nothing.
Berlusconi gets out of bed with Gaddafi
Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi felt the heat and telephoned his Libyan counterpart to call for an end to the violence, writes Josephine McKenna from Rome.
Richardson: one cheer for American imperialism
There’s been a lot of soul-searching in the West over the past few days about the warmth of its recent rapprochement with Colonel Gaddafi.
