‘Fires will be kindled to testify that two and two make four. Swords will be drawn to prove that leaves are green in summer…’
It is one of Giorgia Meloni’s favourite quotes and it comes from G. K. Chesterton.
In a similar vein, she regards herself and her party as owing more to the late British conservative philosopher Roger Scruton than to the revolutionary socialist Mussolini.
In an interview earlier this year, she said she often quotes Scruton and that:
‘In all the many things he was so passionate about, from art and music to wine and being a country gentleman, he always knew how to embody the essence of conservatism as a way of life and never as an ideology […] I believe that the big challenge today globally, not only in Italy, is between those who defend identity and those who do not […] that is what Scruton meant when he said that if you destroy something, you do not necessarily do something new and better. I’d probably be a Tory if I were British. But I’m Italian.’
Well, is Meloni the Italian Tory, sub-par? She’s no Liz Truss, but more of the old guard with a touch of Italian passion. Passion for her country and what it traditionally stands for – something the Tories often forget but managed to get back with Brexit.
One does wonder how her win will affect other political movements in Europe.
During the first round of the French election, Marine Le Pen won second place – the best result yet for the National Front. We, of course, can’t forget the history that is the attempted alliance between the National Front for French Unity and the Italian Social Movement. But that was the 70s and Meloni and Le Pen have moved far away from those roots.
Orwell taught us the perils of two and two make five. It is already clear that Meloni knows two and two make four. She has already proved to not bow to ideology. She is Eurosceptic, but supports Nato. She is firm on immigration, but not as those who attempt to smear her ‘racist’. She is closer to conservative Brits, but perhaps more importantly, closer to Viktor Orban the Prime Minister of Hungary. Both recognise the importance of defending ‘God, fatherland, and family’.
Meloni has promised to preserve those three tenants, as Orban has done. Moreover, she has put forward a strong and measured stance on the current energy crisis in Europe. In her first speech post the elections she said:
‘The attitude of Italy needs to return to defending its national interests. This is something that will change in the next few months […] This doesn’t mean a negative attitude to Europe but a positive attitude to ourselves.’
This is realpolitik and in the current climate very much needed.
It also represents care for tradition and her country. From Rome, Meloni pledges to ‘govern for all of Italy’. This is a movement that is not just for all of Italy, but for all of Europe. The so-called ‘far right’ party (but appropriately named the ‘Swedish Democrats’) won the second most amount of votes in their most recent election. They too are concerned about immigration and national identity. And it seems a lot of voters are, too, across Europe.
I have no doubt Meloni would have approved of Brexit and she is looking to diplomatically do something similar in her distinctive Italian way. I think a lot of Europe is fed up.
This goes beyond the boorish right-left debates on topics like abortion and gay marriage – it is about security and national identity. Only when times get tough do we remember that they are the most important steadfast values we must preserve.
I hope the leaves are green in summer. They are looking good. Buona fortuna, Giorgia Meloni!
You can see the interview here
