The rightwing contests the fact they have a right to vote, but then Senators are senators, not privileged spectators. Senators for life tend to vote for the left.
It goes without saying that it is very rare that a rightwing individual become a Senator for life. Being based on outstanding merit, it's a contradiction in terms.
Italian Election Day Open Thread | de Gondi:
Lifetime Senators are appointed by the President of the Republic for outstanding merits. Also, all ex-Presidents of the Republic become lifetime Senators.
Italy Elections Open Thread 2.0 | kcurie:
They are Francesco Cossiga, Oscar Luigi Scalfaro, Giorgio Napolitano, Giulio Andreotti, Sergio Pininfarina, Rita Levi Montalcini e Emilio Colombo.
Italy Elections Open Thread 2.0 | toyg:
Scalfaro, Napolitano e Montalcini have strong relationships with the Prodi coalition, so their vote (at least for the initial government creation) will most certainly be casted with the Union. Cossiga is kind of a crazy horse, so you can't really say, but he fell out with Berlusconi a while ago. Andreotti could ask for something in return for his vote, and where he votes Colombo will probably follow. I have no idea about Pininfarina (didn't even know he was a senator!).
Giulio Andreotti has usually voted for the government out of the conviction that a government should exercise governance if there's no other choice on the horizon.
Francesco Cossiga is the last step in the evolution of the velociraptor on beenies. He said he would vote for the spending bill only if Prodi formally declared that there will be no parliamentary investigation into the G8 events in Genova in 2001.
To the list add Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, former president of the Republic.
Ciampi, Scalfaro, Levi Montalcini and Colombo regularly vote for the Left.
Huh! What was his public rationale?
By the way, would you have the time to write a diary on how things stand regaring this issue? And I don't just mean the police raid on the school where nonviolent G8 protesters camped, but police tactics re Black Block (wait while they create mayhem, attack peaceful protesters once they ran away), apparent Black Block provocators (who took off their mask and chatted with policemen), Fini's role when he visited the police leadership, etc... *Traitor*, n. A benighted individual who perceives an illusory distinction between serving his nation and abetting the criminals who govern it.
There was a massive demonstration in Genova this weekend asking for a parliamentary investigation into G8. There were no incidents. The police kept out of sight, a sign of the times under Manganelli.
The institution of a parliamentary investigation is in the Union program but has been vetoed by the Centrists especially Mastella who has menaced to leave the coalition over it. It's one of the bitter pills the Left has had to swallow. Since it's part of the program, Mastella is going to have to eat crow. Like many Leftist points in the Union program, such as the Italian PACS (called DICO), the promises have been postponed. Prodi's primary concern is to modernize Italy through economic, industrial and consumer reforms. Civil stuff and redress is on the back shelf.
What you've said about the actual incidents in Genova corresponds essentially to fact. Of course, judiciary truths are an entirely different matter.
