Overview
- La Verità alleged a Quirinale-linked effort to block Giorgia Meloni, naming adviser Francesco Saverio Garofani and citing talk of a “grande lista civica nazionale” and a “provvidenziale scossone.”
- The presidency issued an unusually sharp note expressing “stupore” and saying the reconstruction “sconfina nel ridicolo,” rejecting the narrative.
- FdI House leader Galeazzo Bignami asked for a prompt denial of the reported quotes and later clarified his request targeted Garofani, not President Sergio Mattarella.
- Government point man Giovanbattista Fazzolari said neither Fratelli d’Italia nor Palazzo Chigi questions Mattarella’s institutional loyalty, while La Verità’s director Maurizio Belpietro stood by his reporting.
- Opposition parties (PD, M5S, Avs) demanded an urgent briefing from Meloni, and Meloni signaled she expected a denial from the adviser as the episode kept tensions with the Quirinale in the spotlight.