FROM OUR REPORTER
VENICE – He almost never says his name. If it happens, it’s a mistake. These five letters are taboo for 83-year-old Speaker Emeritus Nancy Pelosi. We mention him all the time, which upsets her a little: Do you think Trump can win? Were you expecting Trump? He contemptuously calls him “the occasional occupant of the White House” and defines his possible election as a “worst-case scenario” and then bluntly: “a tragedy.” Nancy Pelosi meets a small group of journalists in Venice, on the sidelines of the DVF Awards, fashion designer Diane von Fürstenberg’s award that honors female solidarity. She is the first woman to hold the office of speaker and she remembers: “Thirty-six years ago, when I entered Congress, there were only 23 women. Now we are at 60 percent” – she is one of the protagonists . They tell us he’ll stay for twenty minutes to talk to us, but then he stays for almost an hour. She gestures, tells us how proud she is of her Italian heritage, gets excited and raises her right arm to mime a verse from the national anthem that she loves very much: The bombs exploding in the air/proved that night our flag was still there. Because despite everything – that is, despite Trump – the American flag, according to the speaker emeritus, still flies high in the world.
Resentment aside, Donald Trump seems to be doing well in the polls despite the ongoing trials: “The occasional occupant of the White House is a threat to democracy.” The Republican Party was a major party in America. He did important things for our country and as a result, great leaders were born. It has now become a criminal cult. I never speak ill of others, but this is a tragedy. Pelosi knows that there is a hard core of the population that will continue to support the former president. It consists of people “who deny the rights of women and gays, and anti-Semites.” We will never convince them. Instead, there is another part that is afraid of the future, of globalization, of immigration. These are legitimate concerns that Joe Biden understands. He will win, he is a wise and sensitive man, he relies on women, on strong economic policy, on education. Whoever says he is too old, remember that he is only three years older than the other person.” And then: “The moment will come when these people will realize that they have neither an accused nor a convicted person as a leader If Trump returns as commander in chief, there will be another concern that will plague the world: Ukraine. “He is a friend of Putin, we must do everything to ensure that he never sets foot in the White House again.” Together with NATO, which the Tsar believed he was weakening, we can work for the freedom and defense of women in particular that are used as weapons of war.” The conflict in Ukraine is exactly one of the issues that you associate with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. “When she came to Washington, she made a very positive impression on us.” They found a similarity of views on the Russian invasion, on relations with China and on Italy’s need for cooperation with the EU. “Our countries are good friends,” he smiles. Pelosi is a Democrat who likes to repeat that she is a Democrat, and she knows that we are fascinated that she agrees with the leader of an opposing party: “We haven’t talked about domestic policy, I know some have .” Aspects are problematic from a respect perspective for the LGBTQ+ community. For us it is a value, an ethical question,” he explains.
It is clear that he wants to focus on other things, for example he tells how Thomas Jefferson visited the Doge’s Palace at the end of the 18th century and became familiar with the concept of separation of powers, which he then brought back to the USA. But let’s bring it back to current events. It is impossible not to ask them about the Brics summit that has just ended: Brazil proposed a currency that would overthrow the dollar’s dominance. She: “It’s no coincidence that they met in Johannesburg, with all due respect to these countries.” I don’t think they have a clear idea of where they want to go.” And from his trip to Taiwan exactly that Day Biden approves direct military aid to the Tapei government for the first time. “My visit brought no changes. The policy remains to maintain the status quo and not to change it by force on either side.” But then he mentions Hong Kong, pirated intellectual property, the Uyghurs, Tibet. “You got me talking about elections,” laughs Pelosi toward the end of the conversation. She remembers how much she loves being here in Venice on trips with her family. So: Excuse me, speaker emeritus, what do you think of the Hollywood strike? “It’s two hundred days, it will take a little longer.” Technology is a double-edged sword, but you have to be at the table to find a solution. But I’m on the side of the workers, I’m a Democrat.”