During the new episode of Fourth Republicthe program hosted by Nicola Porro on Rete 4 Monday 1 July 2024lots of discussions and very little space for dialogue, especially when the topic of home occupation is discussed, but let’s find out together what happened during the evening, starting with the comment on Joe Biden (I think he desperately needs his wife, it’s like she’s his carer) up to ending with the technical problem that occurs during a video connection.
Quarta Repubblica, Episode 1 July: What Happened
The episode begins with a debate on the changes in Europe, focusing on the situation in France (election results and “Revolution“) It is on “right-wing wind” in the EU, in particular on the current position of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni: “I think she will do Italy’s interests first and foremost. I don’t think she’s very passionate and maybe that’s why she came to power for its own sake.“, comments Alessandro Sallusti. “Meloni Can’t Decide Whether to Break With the Extremists“, says another guest, while Veronica Gentile claims: “Meloni finds herself squeezed into a minority position but is forced“.
Then we move on to the situation in the United Statesto the debate between Donald Trump e Joe Biden and how all this will affect European politics. According to his supporters and politicians, Biden would no longer be able to govern, both because of his physical and verbal stumbles, and because he often appears disoriented, as happened during the G7. Edward Luttwak, economist and political scientist, in a video link talks about “moral offense against President Biden“, remembering that “He didn’t give up when he was hit by two huge tragedies“, ma “now he has an obvious physical deterioration and those in the White House instead of recognizing it and doing the right thing are trying to keep him there as a vehicle for their political ambitions. There is no chance that he will go to the elections in November. Before all these filmed events, professional polls already gave Trump as the winner. This insistence now in wanting him to run it’s an abuse of an old person“. Geriatrician Roberto Bernabei says: “There is a successful old man who is Trump, Mattarella, Pope Francis and there is pathological aging, with disabilities. Biden is rigidhis face doesn’t move. There are signs of motor disorders, usually related to Parkinson’s. There are all the signs of senile aging. I think he has a desperate need of his wife, it’s like she’s his carer“. (Almost) all the guests in the studio find Biden very endearing, while they say that Trump has the strength of the narrative and the country itself on his side, together with “a strategy for America“.
Ilaria Salis and the occupations: between Vannacci, Sansonetti and verbal clashes
The focus shifts to Ilaria Salis and her “political battle” relating to the occupation of houses, with Roberto Vannacci who, after having seen a video on the subject, where the Honourable Member declares “What’s right isn’t always legal“, comments: “If you are an Italian citizen what is right must also be legalotherwise you enter the field of illegality which is punished by the Law, the famous social pact“. Amedeo Ciaccheri (Green Left Alliance) intervenes: “What Vannacci said [la maggioranza decide e la minoranza si adegua, ndr] It looks more like Lenin’s dictatorship of the proletariat. This is not the democratic system. Wrong laws can be changed. In relation to what the Honorable Salis denounced, he noted that in his city there is a problem. 12 thousand council houses under the responsibility of the Lombardy Region that have been left empty for years while 18 thousand people are waiting to be given one. Faced with a problem, it has always happened that movements, unions and political forces have organized themselves to denounce a problem. Have they done it with legal methods? They have denounced a situation and with respect to it, politics has taken the responsibility of solving them“. Rita Dalla Chiesa declares: “I think it’s wrong to even stand here and talk about it. For many years I’ve talked about illegal houses, I’ve heard stories, I’ve seen tears of people who had spent their whole lives to set up a house and then it was occupied and no one did anything. Salis didn’t shine a spotlight on the problem of houses, we came to find out that she had squatted a house and since then she has brought up this thing about vacant houses which should be assigned to those who are waiting, but we have been saying this for years“.
Then he intervenes Annamaria AddantePresident of the tenants and owners association Ater Roma, which deals with legality in this situation: “Since ’92 I have seen things, they are unspeakable. If the relatives of big politicians occupy the houses, no one will kick them out, and if they die their relatives obtain it with fake signatures and become owners of properties. The issue of public housing is shameful because there is a black market behind it. Until Renzi made the law, they used non-EU citizens to occupy the houses. Then the organizers of all this found a buyer. Now they can’t do it anymore and so they occupy public buildings. They burned my car in 2012 just because I told the truth. If I go to occupy a house I find myself with a 21 thousand euro fine, occupation compensation and trial, while they don’t pay a damn thing and they even give them the house“. Ciaccheri asks “What does this have to do with Salis?“, and the interested party declares: “She organized these things! She was part of the organizations. I reported all their misdeeds to Giletti and they burned my car, but I had no evidence… I can suspect, but then… Why did Salis occupy two houses?“
Piero Sansonetti, director of Unità, mentions the word “racket” and tempers flare up more and more, with Addante denying having spoken of this and him pressing her: “I don’t know if these crimes exist, the judiciary must intervene on the houses sold, which however have nothing to do with Ilaria Salis”. “Legality does not mean taking something from someone who has more right to it than you. That is robbery!“, Addante replies before hearing Sansonetti’s response: “Go report Salis. Why are they after her? Do you know how many MPs have a definitive conviction? She has no pending charges in Italy, no complaints or convictions. If you bring me proof that she committed an illegality, we can discuss it.“. The clash becomes even more heated when Addante insistently shouts: “Why did Salis occupy a house? She lives there, she has 90 thousand euros of debt!“.
Chaos in the studio
At a certain point the host is forced to launch a report to contain the situation, and upon returning to the studio Addante tries to ask a question but Ciaccheri stops her: “How dare he quote politicians?“The interested party replies: “You’re not well, I just want to ask you a question“. Since chaos reigns in the studio, with people talking over each other after each intervention, so much so that following the debate is very difficult and Mrs. Addante never manages to conclude a thought live, Nicola Porro gets angry several times: “No, I don’t care about this thing. I can’t understand why in this study they can’t say a very simple thing: these people don’t belong in those houses. It has something to do with Salis because she occupied two houses! If you make it personal I’ll move on to something else, I don’t care, I don’t even know who the people you mention are. There’s a problem here! Why can’t this lady speak? [si riferisce alla Addante, ndr]. I am the host and I could not hear her reasoning. Do you want to let her speak?“Then, when Addante and Sansonetti talk about occupying together to achieve the goal of giving the houses to those on the list, the host loses his temper and shocks the guests: “I with this criterion I’m turning into Charles Bronson, next time I see someone making a mess in the subway or public order is there I’ll start beating everyone up! Let’s occupy, let’s do it, it looks like a movie from Big Bad Wolf!“Then there was a technical problem with Langone’s microphone (his voice didn’t reach the studio), with Porro getting agitated: “Let’s hear it though, can we put the audio on from the control room? Nothing, it doesn’t work, phenomenal“). Finally, the case of Giovanni Toti and Italy’s (disastrous) match are discussed, citing in particular the title of the article on Libero: “Go digging“.
