US Writer: Berlusconi is a Clown Like Bush
Source: Al Manar TV, 16-04-2008
A famous U.S. author Erica Jong has described Berlusconi as "a clown like George W. Bush", in remarks published on Tuesday during her visit to Rome.
"It's incredible that people have elected him for a third time," Jong said of Berlusconi, according to the ANSA news agency.
"Both of our countries have governments led by people who are incompetent," said Jong.
The success of people like Berlusconi and Bush, she added, was because people feared intellectuals.
"In fact, Berlusconi is an ordinary man and worthless intellectual," Jong said of the conservative Italian leader.
Italy's Silvio Berlusconi pledged on Tuesday to use his big election win to push through economic reforms, close the border to illegal immigrants in a crackdown on criminals he called "the army of evil", and rescue Italy's troubled airline. He announced that he would hold his first cabinet meeting in Naples, which has been crippled by months of accumulated garbage, and that he would govern from there three days a week until the crisis was resolved.
Berlusconi's bloc won solid majorities in both the Senate and lower house in the early general election. Berlusconi, 71, is embarking on his third term as prime minister. The Prime Minister-elect has served two previous terms, last resigning in May 2006 after losing a bitterly contested election.
Berlusconi has been criticized for consolidating political, economic and media interests under his control. During his previous rule, Italy's richest man and most powerful media mogul obtained a controlling stake in Mediaset, one of the largest corporations in the country. The list of charges goes on, ranging from perjury and tax evasion to accusations of overstating corporate profits and illegal campaign financing, even Mafia collusion. So far, Berlusconi has managed to place himself above the law to escape prosecution.
The polls were held three years ahead of schedule following the collapse of Romano Prodi's centre-left coalition.
The billionaire has warned of "difficult months ahead" and has vowed to work with the centre-left opposition to pass much-needed economic reforms. He has vowed to send back Italian soldiers to Iraq and withdraw his country's contingent from the United Nations Interim Force in south Lebanon.
Berlusconi will head Italy's 62nd government since World War II. In a radio interview on Tuesday, Berlusconi said he planned to announce his government line-up within a week. On Thursday, he is due to hold talks with Russia's President Vladimir Putin in Sardinia.
A famous U.S. author Erica Jong has described Berlusconi as "a clown like George W. Bush", in remarks published on Tuesday during her visit to Rome.
"It's incredible that people have elected him for a third time," Jong said of Berlusconi, according to the ANSA news agency.
"Both of our countries have governments led by people who are incompetent," said Jong.
The success of people like Berlusconi and Bush, she added, was because people feared intellectuals.
"In fact, Berlusconi is an ordinary man and worthless intellectual," Jong said of the conservative Italian leader.
Italy's Silvio Berlusconi pledged on Tuesday to use his big election win to push through economic reforms, close the border to illegal immigrants in a crackdown on criminals he called "the army of evil", and rescue Italy's troubled airline. He announced that he would hold his first cabinet meeting in Naples, which has been crippled by months of accumulated garbage, and that he would govern from there three days a week until the crisis was resolved.
Berlusconi's bloc won solid majorities in both the Senate and lower house in the early general election. Berlusconi, 71, is embarking on his third term as prime minister. The Prime Minister-elect has served two previous terms, last resigning in May 2006 after losing a bitterly contested election.
Berlusconi has been criticized for consolidating political, economic and media interests under his control. During his previous rule, Italy's richest man and most powerful media mogul obtained a controlling stake in Mediaset, one of the largest corporations in the country. The list of charges goes on, ranging from perjury and tax evasion to accusations of overstating corporate profits and illegal campaign financing, even Mafia collusion. So far, Berlusconi has managed to place himself above the law to escape prosecution.
The polls were held three years ahead of schedule following the collapse of Romano Prodi's centre-left coalition.
The billionaire has warned of "difficult months ahead" and has vowed to work with the centre-left opposition to pass much-needed economic reforms. He has vowed to send back Italian soldiers to Iraq and withdraw his country's contingent from the United Nations Interim Force in south Lebanon.
Berlusconi will head Italy's 62nd government since World War II. In a radio interview on Tuesday, Berlusconi said he planned to announce his government line-up within a week. On Thursday, he is due to hold talks with Russia's President Vladimir Putin in Sardinia.
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