Despite the drubbing his Socialist Party took at the polls three weeks ago, Socialist Leader Pietro Nenni saw no alternative to limping back into the Center Left coalition with the Christian Democrats for another five-year term. The party, however, had other ideas for regaining working-class support and recovering its voting losses. Overriding Nenni, Socialist delegates voted to stay out of the Center Left alliance until the Christian Democrats gave a firm commitment to carry out the leftist reforms in housing conditions, higher education and social welfare that they had promised—but not delivered—in the previous government.
Such a course would not quite...