Italy opens parliament, but no deal in sight on forming govt
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Italian lawmakers have formally reconvened parliament following the March 4 elections, but without any accord in sight as to the formation of a new government.
The first order of business Friday is the election of presidents of the two parliament chambers. But even that procedural step has been mired in conflict, with the apparent collapse of a deal between the two main populist vote-getters — the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement and the right-wing League — to divvy up the two chambers.
Analysts say even if the League and 5-Stars eventually agree on the presidents of the Senate and Chamber of Deputies, the possibility of a 5-Star-League alliance to govern remains unlikely, given the opposition by the League's main ally in the center-right coalition, Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia.