President-elect Trump is playing host to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at Mar-a-Lago this weekend, suggesting he plans to develop a warmer relationship with one of his closest ideological allies in Europe.
Trump praised Meloni, 47, for having "taken Europe by storm" during a dinner Saturday night. Meloni was elected in 2022 after running on a conservative pro-family and anti-immigration agenda, panned as "far-right" by many in the media.
Meloni is the first female Italian prime minister, and she has served as leader of the Brothers of Italy party since 2014. Both she and her party surged in popularity thanks to backlash against how the Italian government handled the COVID-19 pandemic.
Meloni's coalition government is likely the closest ideological ally Trump has within the European Union. Meloni has also developed a close relationship with top Trump ally Elon Musk, who has frequented Mar-a-Lago since Election Day.
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Similar to the U.S., Italy faces a major illegal immigration problem with migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea to their shores. Meloni's "return hubs" policy ensures that migrants are not released into Italy during their asylum process, a program she says has become a "model" for Europe.
"It is a new, courageous, unprecedented path, but one that perfectly reflects the European spirit," she said of the program in October.
Meloni has also proven to go against the grain on social issues, moving last year to limit parental rights for same-sex couples. The policy ensures that only the biological parent of a child within a same-sex marriage enjoys full parental rights.
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Meloni's coalition government has also proven uncommonly stable compared to Italy's recent history. She has avoided in-fighting within her party and opposition leaders have failed to coalesce around any candidate to effectively challenge her.
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All this places Meloni in a natural position to serve as a go-between for the Trump administration and the European Union over the next four years.
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., Trump's nominee for secretary of state, was also in attendance when Meloni visited Trump's Florida residence this weekend.
President Biden is set to travel later this week to Rome to meet with Meloni and then Pope Francis. The White House said Biden's meeting with Meloni will "highlight the strength of the U.S.-Italy relationship" and will include the president thanking the prime minister "for her strong leadership of the G7 over the past year."
