Mediterranean hegemon

"What, you're going to replace the president of the Supreme Court?"

In the afternoon, Contini went to report to Mussolini. After hearing these "bold words", Mussolini was deeply surprised and reminded, "Calais, I know you are disgusted with Donadoni. , I don’t like this kind of old stubbornness, but the president of the Supreme Court is not so easy to change, not to mention you, even if I appear as the prime minister, it will be difficult... After all, the judicial power is independent. The tenure of judges is very long, and it is very difficult to get rid of a justice.”

"The Supreme Court has decided to accept Matteotti's retrial under pressure from the Socialist Party. I plan to accuse the Socialist Party of violating the constitution to the Constitutional Court and kill the evil practices of some people in the Italian judiciary and political circles. If it is done properly, I think it can To promote the reform of the Supreme Court, Donadoni is the first to bear the brunt and must face it head-on." Contini did not say what evidence he had, but only expressed his determination, "What are your opinions on this?"

Mussolini was stunned for a moment, and then he was overjoyed. Contini wanted to start a full-scale war with the Socialist Party, which was exactly what he wanted. As for whether he could take this opportunity to make Donadoni stink and bring him down, that was secondary. Maybe this kid would be the same as last time. Like Matteotti, he secretly held some unknown evidence, so he smiled and said: "Calais, you are right, I share the same feeling. The current judicial system and legal figures are not adapted to the fascist movement at all. The new demands and new developments in Italy have reached a point where rectification is necessary.”

"Then I'll start with the Supreme Court?"

"Go ahead and do it boldly, I will give you my full support!"

"If the Constitutional Court can support my claim and declare the Socialist Party unconstitutional, do you think Tassotti himself can be more progressive?" Contini smiled slightly, "If so, I will tell him your hope, with the support of the leader , he will make a decision with confidence and stand on the side of the party..."

Mussolini understood this sentence as soon as he heard it: Contini was asking if Tassotti could be given a good position on the Supreme Court if he was willing to stand up, and the premise was that Contini would recruit certain people in the Supreme Court. Get on with it.

Mussolini hesitated and did not immediately express his position.

Contini knew his concerns and persuaded: "Leader, I think if we want to create a new situation in Italy, the key is to rely on the party. The party is the core of our cause and the force that guides us forward and must play a leading role in all aspects." , the more important thing is to manage people. Whether it is the parliament, the government, or even the judiciary, they should respond to the party’s call and implement the party’s line and policies instead of going against the party, let alone becoming a self-righteous independent small kingdom that holds back the party. Only in this way can the country be united and move forward together under the leadership of the leader, and Italy will have hope for the future... At such a critical moment, the party's unified leadership is crucial. Once you have identified the goal, you must persevere and not waver. , waste time in discussions, prevarication, and wrangling. What the Italian people want is achievements, results, and prosperity. As long as they have the support of the people, what does it matter if there are more or less flashy procedural things? Achievements and achievements are achieved through hard work, not by talking about it.”

"What you said is very good, very good!" Mussolini was very happy to be flattered by this sentence. The other party did hit his mind: Although Fascisti currently dominates the government, it also has a certain influence in parliament and the judiciary. Although he still cannot achieve the goal of monopolizing power, this is also a headache for him. The reason why he has allowed Contini to quarrel with the Socialist Party is also based on this consideration. Now Contini wants to go to the Supreme Court to harm him. Of course he would be happy to see the results of going to the judiciary to cause trouble and set fire without him having to show up personally.

"Find a way to tell Tassotti that I have always paid attention to his ideas and efforts. A judge as knowledgeable and experienced as him really needs to make new and greater contributions to the Italian people in the new historical period. contribute!"

With Mussolini's words, Contini went back satisfied, and then asked his subordinates to tell Tassotti through a secret phone call that night.

Tassotti was overjoyed to hear that even Mussolini had expressed such a stance. Only then did his wife understand why she was torturing herself in bed that day. While she was happy for Tassotti, she reminded: "You still have to find ways to say a few words to the leader, and don't be deceived by his subordinates. Politicians are best at burning bridges across rivers."

Tassotti saw the opportunity and took advantage of the opportunity to go to the Ministry of Justice to "encounter" Mussolini. As expected, Mussolini was very enthusiastic towards him. Although he did not say a word of substance, the demeanor he showed when shaking hands was The strength of the message conveys this signal: I am optimistic about you!

That's enough.

On May 11, the third day after the Supreme Court announced that Matteotti’s reputation infringement case would be retried, the legal team hired by Contini formally filed a lawsuit with the Constitutional Court, accusing the Socialist Party of exerting pressure on the Supreme Court, interfering with justice, and Undermining constitutional independence, a large amount of evidence was presented: including relevant articles published in the name of the Socialist Party in the newspaper "Socialist" that believed that the first and second trials were unfair; relevant statements made by Socialist Party members in public; and the incoming and outgoing of the main leaders of the Socialist Party. The evidence of the Supreme Court - vehicles and people were all photographed by the dark ones; there were also scenes of socialists, the president of the Supreme Court and some justices talking happily.

To be honest, these evidences are not very directional. It is still a bit far-fetched to prove that the Socialist Party and the Supreme Court have colluded. In terms of empirical ability, they are far inferior to the video of Donadoni receiving money. However, Tassotti did not question it at all, but announced that he accepted the prosecution. In order to show solemnity, he formed a trial court headed by himself and a total of 5 Constitutional Court judges as the core.

However, he spent a lot of time on the selection of judges. All the selected people were either his confidants and friends, or people who were dissatisfied with the Socialist Party in terms of political views. Although they always advocate judicial independence, judges are living people. They have their own ideas and positions. Although they will not express them publicly, Tassotti is very clear. He has been in the Constitutional Court for 7 years. Can't he see the things behind these things?

"Tassotti, what are you crazy about? The Supreme Court just announced a retrial, and you agreed to the unconstitutional case. Are you going to judge the Supreme Court?"

"Someone wants to sue and has produced evidence. I wonder why the case can't be filed? Is the Socialist Party a tiger that can't be touched?" Tassotti answered calmly, "If I leak your phone call now, someone will sue the Supreme Court tomorrow for interfering with the work of the Constitutional Court."

"You..." Donadoni was a little annoyed, but finally gave up the idea of ​​arguing with Tassotti on this matter and said , "What the Socialist Party did is nothing like exerting pressure or interfering with the judiciary, let alone being unconstitutional. If this is unconstitutional, then isn't it even more unconstitutional for Mussolini to gather hundreds of thousands of black shirts to march into Rome to seize power?"

"You can ask the Socialist Party to accuse Mussolini and the Fascists of violating the constitution. I didn't say I wouldn't accept their indictment." Tassotti sneered, "Why don't they dare to come?"

Donadoni thought: How dare the Socialist Party accuse Mussolini of violating the constitution now? If they did, the Socialist Party would be smashed into ruins by the black shirts tonight. He smiled bitterly and said, "But I'm very passive if I do this..."

"The real passiveness is not here, right?" Tassotti thought for a while, "You should call Ciano Jr. He has something you are interested in, something that is enough to blow the Supreme Court to pieces."

"What is it?"

"Won't you know if you ask him?"