THE OPINION
Luciano Tirinnanzi intervista Paolo Becchi su Panorama N. 34, 09/08/2018
«According to the authors, è in atto un passaggio dalla Seconda alla Terza Repubblica basato su un dato che – credo anch’io – non può essere contestato. The inability of the so-called "progressive" forces to serve the interests of workers and small and medium-sized businesses, in short, of the majority of Italians. […] I believe Becchi is right when in one of his articles on the "sovereignist revolution", collected now in this book, maintains that the opposition between "right" and "left" has now been overcome by that which in my opinion sees people and elites opposed. […] I want to give new impetus to popular sovereignty. “Italians first” means nothing more than this. They left us a country with little hope for the future and with few smiles. Rebuilding it won't be easy. But I promise you that I will give it my all".
It is an extract from the preface signed by the Minister of the Interior and Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, which baptizes the political essay by Paolo Becchi and Giuseppe Palma, From the Second to the Third Republic, appena uscito per Paesi edizioni (304 pp., 12 euro). A book that, first, recounts the birth of the Lega-M5s government and frames it as a definitive overcoming of the political past. Ma è davvero così? We asked Professor Becchi, first ideologist of the Cinquestelle and now closer to the positions of the League.
«Il passaggio dalla Seconda alla Terza Repubblica è avvenuto senza coinvolgere la Costituzione, therefore it is partly an improper definition, but which nevertheless tells of the exhaustion of a political process that began in the 1990s. As I write in the book, il suo aspetto innovatore è nella sintesi tra sovranismo identitario, that of Salvini's League, and social sovereignty, proposed instead by Di Maio and the Cinquestelle. Non a caso l’uno si è preso il dicastero dell’Interno e l’altro quello del Lavoro. Terza Repubblica significa avere un governo che sta facendo nascere qualcosa di nuovo, without throwing the constitutional rules to the wind".
Sovereignty is a very popular word today. It gives us a definition?
Sovereignism is the new political dichotomy that overcomes the old right-left scheme. Today, on the other side there is globalism. It will be precisely between sovereignism and globalism that the political clash of the future will take place, not only in Italy. The term is not philosophically new, was born from the idea of ​​the sovereign state. Today we are no longer faced with Leviathan, that is, a central state that dominates autonomies, because strong sovereignty has entered into crisis. But, sovereignty itself has not disappeared and so we have a weak sovereignty, open to differences, to local autonomies, to regional self-determinations. This current of thought was typical of the philosopher Althusius and says that men cannot be recognized only in the idea of ​​humanity, too abstract concept, but they need to identify existentially with something even closer to themselves, how can it be, precisely, a nation. If in the past sovereignism did not find space, today it lives again because there are those who openly oppose globalism, al globalism and cosmopolitanism.
Who between the League and Cinquestelle is sincerely sovereignist?
At this moment, the League. A party held up as nationalist, fascist and Lepenian, which instead opted for an internal transformation, without losing the federalist roots but abandoning the secessionist background. The League is trying to go with Gianfranco Miglio, beyond Gianfranco Miglio. Even if it must fill the absence of conceptual doctrinal elaboration, an aspect to which populist movements always give little importance. As for the Cinquestelle, the European elections will be clarifying. The League has a clear position, while they have to decide which camp to stay in. In the past they were with Farage's Ukip, this time what will they choose?
He believes that the sovereignist government will last?
With the Third Republic underway, albeit at an embryonic level, we are faced with an experiment that has all the elements and premises to function well and last a long time. As for the government's stability, I don't think there will be any particular problems. I see two different forces that can be complementary, so something good can come from their meeting. We just need to understand how Europe will respond to the Italian budget law and the parameters that the government will decide to respect or not. Salvini has already said that he will not be stopped by a few decimals, ma i rapporti di forza interni emergeranno più chiaramente dopo il voto proporzionale delle europee. These will indicate the way more precisely.
Between Luigi Di Maio and Matteo Salvini as future leaders, Who would you bet on??
Answering like an old-fashioned grillino, I say it can only be Salvini. Why, if the two-mandate rule applies, Di Maio has already done them and will have to go home. Then maybe the rules change, but for now... Salvini also embodies the sovereignist and populist message more effectively than Di Maio, because he lives in direct contact with the people. That's the key to his success.
But what exactly does Matteo Salvini want?
His "Italians first" means the return to the concept of nation. Years ago he would never have accepted it. But I don't see any streak of racism in this, only the attempt to overcome the "Po Valley first" and the inveterate anti-thieving Rome. National interest is at the center of attention for the first time, this is the only meaning of that expression.
Source: https://paolobecchi.wordpress.com/2018/08/16/e-invece-io-dico-attenti-a-quei-due-che-resteranno-alleati-a-lungo-parla-paolo-becchi/