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Following anger over her initial silence on Trump's papal attacks, 🇮🇹PM Giorgia Meloni last night issued a statement with her 1st direct criticism of the 🇺🇸president since his re-election in 2024. “Trump’s remarks about the Holy Father are unacceptable"...🧵 davekeating.substack.com/p/orbans-def...

In yesterday's Substack Live I discussed how Trump's recent actions are causing headaches for his far right allies in Europe. The overwhelming rejection of Orban by Hungarian voters on Sunday is likely sending them into panic mode. Meloni is the most exposed out of any of them right now because...🧵

Meloni is actually governing rather than in opposition, limiting her room for manoeuvre. Her whole political career has been defined by her ability to be everything to everyone and yet do almost nothing in the end despite the smoke and mirrors...🧵

She has so far been able to navigate Trump's immense unpopularity in Italy with vague statements such as saying she "neither condemns nor supports" the Iran War. But this shrewd political operator, who has managed to convince the world she is a centrist despite...🧵

...leading the successor party to Mussolini's Fascists, has encountered a conundrum even she can't overcome: reconciling her years of support for Trump with her conservative Catholic base outraged by Trump's attacks on...🧵

🧵...their church (a minority religion in the US which has a long history of being vilified there). Trump didn't help things when he posted a blasphemous image depicting himself as Jesus yesterday, before hastily deleting it.

BREAKING: Trump has condemned Meloni. Meloni's free pass is over. Trump has hit back - saying she's the one who is "unacceptable". So Orban's gone, Meloni's turned, Weidel & Le Pen are running full speed away from Trump. He has no allies in Europe left (other than Rutte?)

Fico?