Death throes with a deadline

The political death throes of Silvio Berlusconi will continue until at least December 14. That is the date set by the presidents of the Republic and the two legislative chambers for the prime minister to be submitted to a vote of confidence in the Senate and a censure vote in Congress.

The initiative is the result of the split between Berlusconi and one of his most important allies, Gianfranco Fini, who has removed his ministers from the government. Sick of the scandals that plague the prime minister, as well as his extravagant way of governing, Fini is trying to put an end to the dismal Berlusconi period. Unless there are any surprises in the voting - something that can never be ruled out in the Italy of the current prime minister - Berlusconi must seek out the support of an extra 10 deputies in order to avoid censure in Congress, the net result of which would be early elections. In the Senate, on the other hand, he has a sufficient majority to win the confidence vote.

But if these are matters of parliamentary arithmetic, the political crisis that Italy is currently suffering is overwhelming the country's institutional framework. While Italy may appear to be immune to Berlusconi's scandals, the recent revelations regarding his activities with minors go much further than parties with prostitutes and heads of state. For too long now the presence of Berlusconi has been pushing the country toward an unsustainable situation, in which a high percentage of citizens feel that they identify with this Italy, and another percentage, equally high and possibly growing, is ashamed of it. The most recent opinion polls show Berlusconi enjoying less support since he repeated his electoral win in 2008.

Voting on the future of Il Cavaliere coincides with that of the state budget. As with other countries in the euro zone, Italy cannot continue to give off the impression of governmental disorganization. But nor can it postpone the approval of the budgets knowing that managing the Berlusconi legacy will not be easy. The turbulence in the financial markets is shaking up Europe once more, and Rome cannot stand on the sidelines while decisions are made, nor can it become the political invalid of the EU. With Berlusconi as leader, this is the situation that looms on the horizon.