It was enough to look at his face to understand that, with Silvio Berlusconi's announcement of his yes to trust in the Letta government, what poker players call the stake was being played. Which, in this case, would be what remains of his credibility and his political power to the old and worn leader of the Italian right. A desperate move, in short, determined by the fall of the numbers which were to show him that moment after moment there were more and more those who could be placed on the list of "traitors". That is to say of those who no longer believed in his strategy, and who were therefore ready to split by following the ministers and, above all, the secretary Angelino Alfano, in the already announced future parliamentary groups.
After all, it was now clear to the player Berlusconi that his strategy, suggested by improvised advisers, had failed: the deputies and senators had only pretended to resign and the same was true for the ministers. As for the formalization of the crisis, it was clear that the numbers in the Senate they said more. Letta had the majority, indeed a new majority now de-Belusconized. At this point all he had to do was turn the table over or at least reshuffle the cards to prevent the points from being checked and who, within the PDL, had won or lost. Certainly it was a question of making a petty impression and to understand this, just take a look at the sites of the international press. But perhaps a game that seemed definitively lost could be reopened.
It will be like this? The next few hours will tell. Everything will depend on how determined the so-called traitors will be (to whose political considerations Berlusconi ultimately had to adapt anyway). That is, if Cicchitto and the former outgoing ministers are able to go ahead. If so, the real majority of the Letta government will ultimately be less large (the Cavaliere ultras will be missing) but more cohesive. Otherwise he will mean that the political-institutional shocks of these days will have been reabsorbed, but that the political fibrillations (the vote of the Giunta on Berlusconi's decadence is ever closer), could arise again in a few hours. It is no coincidence that the leader of the Pd Luigi Zanda, who spoke immediately after Berlusconi's surprise announcement, wanted to underline, infuriating the pure and hard Berlusconians, that, beyond the tactical expedients, the Government can now count on a different majority even if more limited. And later also President Letta, in his speech to the Chamber, insisted on distinguishing the political majority from the numerical majority.
In short, the move by the Cavaliere has as its first objective that of blocking in the bud, by confusing the cards, the constructive debate that has opened up in the Italian right. In which, with great effort, but also with flashes of courage, some willing are trying to get out of the logic of a party that for twenty years has shown itself to be more "masterful" than leader.
