Ex-General Vannacci is fond of the right Italy
With his provocative far-right theories, retired military officer Roberto Vannacci kicked up a fuss in the army - but in short order, he managed to secure a prominent place in Italian politics. The national-populist Matteo Salvini paved the way for him and is now facing trouble because of it.
Less than a year ago, Italians had never even heard of the 55-year-old General Roberto Vannacci. But things changed dramatically: In under twelve months, he managed to convince 560,000 Italians. That many votes he received in the EU elections at the beginning of June. He ran as an independent candidate for the national-populist government party Lega, and sits in the recently formed far-right faction Europe's Patriots. Lega leader Matteo Salvini has named Vannacci his frontman in the EU parliament - and now has a problem.
Vannacci appeared out of nowhere. Suddenly, his book was there, titled "Il mondo al contrario" ("The Upside-Down World"). He had published it on his own and placed it for sale on Amazon. In the week from August 14th to 20th, it reached the top spot in sales rankings. The success was not due to the writing talent of the general, but rather the provocative content. "I was just a prisoner of the mainstream, Political Correctness," Vannacci explained in subsequent interviews. "That's why I decided to write down my frustration."
Frustrated is Vannacci about many things. About same-sex couples, he writes: "Dear homosexuals, you're not normal, get used to it." Regarding self-defense, it says: "If I ram a pistol into the neck of the scoundrel who attacks me and kills him, I don't understand why I'm charged with manslaughter just because he only had his eyes on my watch." Vannacci complains about what he calls daily brainwashing, whose goal it is, "to impose a normality on all of us that (...) erases any difference between man and woman, between ethnicities (without speaking of races), (...) between the lazy and the diligent."
Discrimination and the selective life
In an interview with the daily newspaper "La Stampa," Vannacci said that separate classes would help both gifted students and students with limitations in their development. He did not recognize discrimination in this. "I would never let a handicapped person compete with me in a race." The school, he continued, must therefore be strict and selective, because that's just life. Special classes or schools are taboo in Italy. That's why the Italian Bishops' Conference vehemently protested against Vannacci's call for selection. But the master of ambiguous statements would not be deterred: He had never spoken of special classes, he insisted.
Regarding the school issue, Vannacci caused great irritation with another comment. About the incidents in Pisa in the spring, where policemen attacked high school students with batons, Vannacci said: "It's not the police that go after the students with batons, but it's the students who put themselves in a position to be beaten." And about the Italian volleyball player Paolo Egonu, whose parents come from Nigeria: "Their physical features do not represent Italy."
Another example of this rhetorical camouflage tactic was provided by him with his claim that the fascist dictator Benito Mussolini was a statesman just like Count Cavour, the first Minister President of the Kingdom of Italy, and Stalin. "In the dictionary, a statesman is someone who has held state offices," he explained pedantically. And during the two decades of fascism in Italy, Vannacci lectured: "History consists of facts, it does not tolerate moral judgment, therefore I do not judge." Regarding Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, he said, "He is certainly not worse than Stalin." Therefore, it is worth making peace with him.
Army enraged, Salvini impressed
Vannacci is married and lives with his wife and two daughters in the Tuscan coastal city of Viareggio. He ran for office for his daughters during the election campaign, saying he wanted to contribute to their future. Before entering politics, Vannacci had spent more than 30 years in the army and rose to the rank of divisional general and chief of staff of the Operational Land Forces. He was involved in numerous missions abroad, including in Iraq, Afghanistan, Rwanda, and Yemen.
In the army, he was respected. At least until the appearance of his book. With this, he managed to anger even the highest military ranks, as he had published it without their approval. As a still serving soldier, he would have had to do this differently. Therefore, Vannacci was also suspended indefinitely.
On the other hand, Matteo Salvini, the Secretary-General of the national-populist party Lega, was immediately impressed by Vannacci from the start. The former hope of the far-right forces is no longer in such a good position himself. His erratic politics and constant staring down of Prime Minister Meloni, who holds the offices of Vice-Premier and Infrastructure Minister in her coalition, is no longer trusted by political insiders and Lega voters.
Le Pen's party does not want Vannacci
In the face of his own waning shine, Salvini saw the rising star of Vannacci as an opportunity. He believed Vannacci could bring new luster to the Lega. Since both share a love for provocation, Salvini hired the Military Vannacci for the list of Lega candidates for the EU Parliament. However, this supposed coup did not go as planned from the start.
Salvini wanted to install Vannacci as Jordan Bardella's deputy in the EU Parliament. The chairman of the French right-wing party Rassemblement National (RN) of Marine Le Pen leads the newly formed EU faction "Patriots for Europe." However, the Frenchman did not want Vannacci and justified his rejection with Vannacci's homophobic positions. In the end, Bardella won the power struggle. Salvini's close friendship with Marine Le Pen, the founder of the RN, did not help either.
Vannacci's meteoric rise has been stopped long ago. It will be interesting to see if he, like other Italian politicians of the recent past, is more than just a blender who destroys himself. A memorable example of this is the comedian and founder of the Five-Star Movement Beppe Grillo. First, he was gone, and then the Stars lost massively in support. However, the general and author may also have his own agenda now that the way to high politics has been paved for him. In this case, Salvini would have served as a useful idiot.
- Despite facing criticism from the Italian Bishops' Conference and being suspended from the army, Former General Roberto Vannacci, the Italian author of the provocative book "Il mondo al contrario," found support in Italian politics, with national-populist leader Matteo Salvini naming him his frontman in the EU parliament.
- Born as an independent candidate for Lega, Vannacci, the former military officer and deputy, gained significant popularity in Italian politics, securing a prominent place in the far-right faction Europe's Patriots and winning the support of 560,000 Italians in the EU elections.
- Italian author and former military officer Roberto Vannacci's provocative book reached the top spot in sales rankings on Amazon due to its controversial content, gaining him popularity and ultimately leading him to a prominent position in Italian politics as a deputy and frontman for Matteo Salvini in the EU parliament.
