Silvio Berlusconi, billionaire media magnate and three-time prime minister, swept back into power this spring by brilliantly capturing the mood of the country, namely a prevailing sense of insecurity among Italians over their economic and physical well-being.

True to his campaign promise, the army on Monday put 3,000 soldiers on urban crime patrols and a national emergency has been declared to deal with the hundreds of mostly African immigrants floating their way from Libya to Italy’s shores. A “census” and the finger-printing of foreign Gypsies have begun. Many are to be expelled.