Analysis
Conte lunches with Trump’s envoy, and politicians pounce
What was the Five Star Movement leader doing having lunch with the envoy of a president whom his own party calls a “bully” and a “gangster”?
For the Italian right, Wednesday was a political field day. Five Star Movement leader Giuseppe Conte was spotted by the right-wing daily Libero having lunch on Tuesday in Rome with Paolo Zampolli, an Italian-American businessman very close to Donald Trump – a sort of private ambassador holding the title of “Special Envoy for Global Partnerships.”
What was the Five Star Movement leader doing having lunch with the envoy of a president whom his own party calls a “bully” and a “gangster”? Conte explained that he accepted an invitation and, in the one-on-one meeting with Zampolli, laid out all his criticisms of the White House's illegal actions, from Venezuela to Iran. “No double-dealing,” Conte wrote in a Facebook post, stressing that “attacks contrary to international law, such as the one on Iran, can never, in my opinion, have Italy's support.” “I told Zampolli that this illegal attack must be stopped, not least because it is a complete failure,” he added. And again: “I reiterated that I will fight to ensure our bases are not made available not only to passing American bombers but also for any logistical support activities.”
The issue blew up on Wednesday in Parliament when Brothers of Italy group leader Galeazzo Bignami attacked Conte, accusing him of a “double standard.” “You go out into the streets to protest against the US government alongside the pro-Pals, but then you go to lunch, obviously in a back room, as is your custom.” The Five Star Movement leader responded: “These are misplaced attacks that reveal the nervousness of a government in disarray that is just turning everything into a circus. Bignami is the one who enjoys wearing a Nazi uniform at parties.”
Five Star Movement Chamber of Deputies group leader Riccardo Ricciardi pulled no punches: “Conte went to a public restaurant, whereas [former Justice Undersecretary] Delmastro goes to restaurants suspected of laundering Camorra mafia money.”
On the floor at the Chamber of Deputies, the atmosphere only got more heated. Forza Italia lawmaker Debora Bergamini joined Bignami in attacking Conte: “I wonder how one can reconcile superficial anti-Americanism, theoretical pacifism and attacks on the government's actions and its alliance with the US, with restaurant meetings with trusted individuals – and I would even say political emissaries – of that same US president.”
“This is the true face of Giuseppe Conte: opportunistic and duplicitous,” read a slogan plastered across Forza Italia's social media profiles. Five Star Movement lawmaker Antonino Iaria went over to the right-wing benches and railed against them until he was expelled from the session by the presiding chairwoman, Anna Ascani of the Democratic Party. “When they have no arguments, they throw mud. It’s a clear sign that they are afraid of Conte. That is what I said at their benches,” Iaria recounted. “I was expelled, but I am glad I did it. Because at certain moments, defending political truth is worth more than any formal reprimand.”
On the center-left, practically no one had any comment on Conte's meeting with Trump's envoy. The exception was Senator Filippo Sensi, from the Democratic Party's right flank, who was scathing on X: “I don’t understand the shock at a leader of a right-wing movement meeting with the envoy of a right-wing president.” This assessment was not at all shared by Democratic Party leader Elly Schlein or the vast majority of the party – but some embarrassment was in the air. The meeting, it has been pointed out, risks weakening the anti-Trump stance that has cemented the progressive camp in recent weeks. “Giuseppe is a man of connections,” commented a Democratic Party MP. “But this meeting during the worst days of the war in Iran is peculiar.”
The issue strikes directly at the heart of the internal debate over holding joint primaries to pick the candidate for prime minister, launched by Conte himself on the day of the recent “No” referendum victory. “The risk is that they will end up dividing rather than uniting,” warned the PD’s Rosy Bindi, who proposed the idea of a “facilitator” like Pier Luigi Bersani to help the parties reach an agreement on a political platform first. The former Democratic Party leader explained to il manifesto: “I am already helping out in a voluntary capacity and will continue to do so, but I do not want any official roles.”
“Normally, the leader of the party that comes in first becomes the prime minister,” Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri bluntly stated. And the PD’s Goffredo Bettini, who has always served as a bridge between the Democratic Party and the Five Star Movement, concluded: “Now that we have agreed that no one is opposed to joint primaries on principle, let’s set it aside. As things stand, both Schlein and Conte legitimately feel that they have chances. But a willingness to compromise can emerge further down the line.”
Originally published at https://ilmanifesto.it/conte-e-linviato-di-trump-un-pranzo-un-po-pesante on 2026-04-02