After 17 Years in Power, Silvio Berlusconi Finally Succumbs

November 08, 2011 from Euronews

Tuesday was one of the longest days in Silvio Berlusconi's 17 years in power. He went into it locked in a struggle with rebels in his own party who he tried to force to vote for a vital state finance bill, but when the vote came they ignored his threats and promises of rewards, and abstained. The opposition also failed to vote, leaving Berlusconi with a 308 votes to none victory, but eight votes short of an absolute majority. He will resign once the financial laws are adopted.

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Silvio Berlusconi

Silvio Berlusconi is an Italian politician, entrepreneur, media proprietor, and Prime Minister of Italy (President of the Council of Ministers of Italy), a position he has held three times. He is the leader of the Forza Italia political movement, a centre-right party he founde... Explore this topic

Italy

Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Southern Europe. To the north, it borders France, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia along the Alps. To the south, it consists of the entirety of the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Sardinia–the two larg... Explore this topic

European sovereign debt crisis

The European sovereign debt crisis is an ongoing financial crisis that has made it difficult or impossible for some countries in the euro area to repay or re-finance their government debt without the assistance of third parties. In 1992, members of the European Union signed th... Explore this topic

Resignation

A resignation is the formal act of giving up or quitting one's office or position. A resignation can occur when a person holding a position gained by election or appointment steps down, but leaving a position upon the expiration of a term is not considered resignation. When an... Explore this topic

Politics of Italy

The politics of Italy is conducted through a parliamentary, democratic republic with a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised collectively by the Council of Ministers, which is led by the President of the Council of Ministers, referred to as "Presidente del Consiglio... Explore this topic

Italian Senate

The Senate of the Republic is a house of the bicameral Italian Parliament. It was established in its current form on 8 May 1948, but previously existed during the Kingdom of Italy as Senato del Regno, itself a continuation of the Senato Subalpino of Sardinia-Piedmont establish... Explore this topic

Economy of Italy

Italy has a diversified industrial economy with high gross domestic product (GDP) per capita and developed infrastructure. According to the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the CIA World Factbook, in 2010 Italy was the seventh-largest economy in the world and th... Explore this topic

Prime Minister of Italy

The Prime Minister of Italy, officially the President of the Council of Ministers of the Italian Republic is the head of government of the Italian Republic. While the office is similar to those in most other parliamentary systems, the Italian prime minister has less authority ... Explore this topic

Euronews

Euronews is a European, multilingual news television channel, headquartered in Lyon-Écully, France. Created in 1993, it claims to be covering world news from a Pan-European perspective. Explore this topic

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