Vannacci’s ‘tractor’: he attacks Salvini over Kyiv and invents a ‘ploughing festival’. But he fires blanks, and FdI capitalises on it

He climbs onto his tractor – he goes to Russia for petrol – but lately Roberto Vannacci has been firing blanks. Over at FdI, they have breathed a slight sigh of relief in recent days: Fn is slipping in the polls and they—the Meloni supporters—while pushing ahead with draconian, somewhat futuristic measures on security and anti-burqa decrees, can pose as (somewhat) responsible in the face of Vannacci’s tirades. The Brothers have welcomed Cateno De Luca into the coalition – he is being backed by Ignazio La Russa, along with other ministers, and Giorgia Meloni will also speak at the rally organised by the leader of ‘Sud chiama Nord’. Meanwhile, they are sending signals (though they are mutual) to Luigi Marattin and courting Carlo Calenda. They are also helping Marco Rizzo, who was once closer to the General, to establish his own faction in the Senate (Incidentally, is Rizzo siding with the right? “No, we’re going it alone, just like in the Chieti by-election”). They’re helping everyone, broadening their base to secure the coveted 42 per cent, but not Vannacci. Yet yesterday his supporters voted with the right, as Rossano Sasso claims, preventing the majority from losing the vote on the reinstatement of anti-vaccine doctors: “It is symbolic that the centre-right, on identity issues, is being saved by the General’s men.” So, whilst waiting for a call from Meloni, the FN leader must reinvent himself, seeking new momentum, or hope for a helping hand from former friends such as Matteo Salvini.

Tomorrow, partly to lend support to the protests of recent weeks, comes the first Futurist agriculture festival: in Trecenta, in the province of Rovigo, the ‘reverse general’ is arriving, alongside former minister Gianni Alemanno. A rural aperitif – which sounds a bit ‘radical chic’ – followed by: ‘an exhibition of vintage agricultural machinery’ and demonstrations of work in the fields. Yesterday, however, the ‘dirty dozen’ went on the offensive again over Ukraine and Russian energy, with the backing – so to speak – of the League leader, who wants to put an end to support for Zelensky, as he stated at the League’s Congress, though he remains ‘loyal’ to the government. Vannacci is not present at the press conference, but Ziello, accompanied by the economic spokesperson Antonio Maria Rinaldi, defends himself well. There are, however, fewer and fewer journalists; the attention seen a few weeks ago has waned, and there are even those playing on their phones. “But we’re interested in the streets,” says Ziello. The main target, however, remains Salvini, against whom a leaflet has been circulated to expose the Transport Minister’s hypocrisy. “Today we’ll be submitting a request for a statement to Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni: given her deputy’s words, has the government’s line changed?” It’s the same argument that Vannacci supports from afar: “Salvini seems to have become a ‘Vannacci’… is it the usual bluff or will it trigger a government crisis?”, says the general, announcing his opposition to the decree on arms for Ukraine. Yet, perhaps the first to hope that the government acts swiftly are the Futurists themselves. Fn has also announced a motion, calling on Crosetto to provide a statement regarding Salvini’s remarks. The other recurring theme is energy: hence an end to sanctions against Russia; we need to “work towards a trade agreement with Moscow to import crude oil and bring down fuel costs”. It is the usual hobbyhorse, alongside remigration and femicide – which, for the Futurists, does not exist. Yesterday’s news, however, comes from Naples: even the Vincentian missionaries of the Congregation of the Mission in Naples are keen to distance themselves from Vannacci. Why is that? The General’s loyalists had organised an event in a convent managed by those very missionaries. However, the missionaries made it clear: “We dissociate ourselves from this.” In other words: “Any vision that pits people against one another, excludes or selects those deemed worthy of acceptance, is far removed from our understanding of charity.” For once, it is they – the Futurists – who are the ‘remigrants’.