Premier attacks Landini for "courtesan" remark.Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni on Thursday lashed out at the leader of Italy's largest trade union for referring to her on television as the "courtesan" of US president Donald Trump.In a post on social media, Meloni hit back at Maurizio Landini, leader of the CGIL union, saying he was "evidently clouded by a mounting resentment (which I can understand)". "I think everyone knows the most common meaning attributed to this word, but, for the benefit of those who might not, I'm publishing the first definition found with a quick internet search," Meloni wrote on social media, posting a screenshot that reads: "Woman of easy virtue, heterosexual; euphemism, prostitute." Il segretario generale della CGIL, Maurizio Landini, evidentemente obnubilato da un rancore montante (che comprendo), mi definisce in televisione una “cortigiana”.Penso che tutti conoscano il significato più comune attribuito a questa parola, ma, a beneficio di chi non lo… pic.twitter.com/JS51GN7Yn9 — Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) October 16, 2025 "And here's another splendid slide from the left" - the prime minister wrote - "the one that for decades lectured us on respect for women, but then, to criticise a woman, for lack of arguments, calls her a prostitute." Responding to Meloni's post, Landini said: "No sexist insults and no resentment." "In a 10-minute interview, which anyone can easily rewatch, answering a question about the Middle East truce agreement, I immediately clarified, to avoid any misunderstanding or exploitation of the term used, what I meant: that Meloni was on the coattails of Trump, she was at Trump's court, she was Trump's lackey" - Landini said in a statement - "I was obviously expressing a political judgment on the failed role of our government and its prime minister." Photo credit: Marco Iacobucci Epp / Shutterstock.com.

Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni on Thursday lashed out at the leader of Italy's largest trade union for referring to her on television as the "courtesan" of US president Donald Trump. In a post on social media, Meloni hit back at Maurizio Landini, leader of the CGIL union, saying he was "evidently clouded by a mounting resentment (which I can understand)". "I think everyone knows the most common meaning attributed to this word, but, for the benefit of those who might not, I'm publishing the first definition found with a quick internet search," Meloni wrote on social media, posting a screenshot that reads: "Woman of easy virtue, heterosexual; euphemism, prostitute." Il segretario generale della CGIL, Maurizio Landini, evidentemente obnubilato da un rancore montante (che comprendo), mi definisce in televisione una “cortigiana”.

Penso che tutti conoscano il significato più comune attribuito a questa parola, ma, a beneficio di chi non lo… — Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) "And here's another splendid slide from the left" - the prime minister wrote - "the one that for decades lectured us on respect for women, but then, to criticise a woman, for lack of arguments, calls her a prostitute." Responding to Meloni's post, Landini said: "No sexist insults and no resentment." "In a 10-minute interview, which anyone can easily rewatch, answering a question about the Middle East truce agreement, I immediately clarified, to avoid any misunderstanding or exploitation of the term used, what I meant: that Meloni was on the coattails of Trump, she was at Trump's court, she was Trump's lackey" - Landini said - "I was obviously expressing a political judgment on the failed role of our government and its prime minister." Photo credit: Marco Iacobucci Epp / Shutterstock.com.