I have been a member of DS, so I know a things or two about inner workings :) Unipol is an integral part of the "cooperative system" (I could have said "movement" a few years ago, but nowadays it's just another system of economical and power forces). This is a fact. The "cooperative system" has a strong relationship with the DS, to the point of sharing or directly owning many of the structures previously owned by P.C.I. and renting them back to DS for nominal fees, etc etc. This is a fact. Over the years, the D'Alema-led "buro-stalinist" wing of the DS has been extremely effective in placing the right men in the right roles, to the point that any internal opponent will not be able to gain enough support from key organisations inside and OUTSIDE the party. This is another fact. Consorte is one of those men. Notice where I said "D'Alema and his cohort"; Consorte is part of that cohort, a group of power-hungry individuals currently strangling the only serious political party in Italy. I have my axe to grind, I admit :) however, I can't really complain that these people are taking a beat for once. I would personally kick them out of the party for good, right away, starting from "Massimino" and ending up with that complete tool, Piero Fassino. They will lose the next election in *exactly* the same way Occhetto did after Mani Pulite, because they think they won already. I will obviously vote for them, because the only chance to win the electoral college for foreign residents is to concentrate votes against the better-placed right-wing parties. But they are scum and should go anyway.