It seems like our favorite French president’s inner circle is getting quite the shuffle. Breton is out, and Séjourné, the most Macroniste of them all, is in. Because nothing says transparency and political progress like a good old-fashioned game of musical chairs at the European Commission. It’s not like Europe has bigger issues to tackle, right? But hey, at least Paris got what it wanted.

When the news arrived yesterday morning that Thierry Breton, the powerful and seasoned European Commissioner appointed by Paris, was resigning in open and bitter conflict with Ursula von der Leyen, we hoped. We hoped that, finally, the political clash over some of the major issues facing Europe would be brought to light. Breton was (or rather, had been) the Commissioner for the Internal Market. We thought: between him and Ursula, there must be disagreement over the content of the Letta report, intended to complete and expand on it. Or perhaps they had argued over the major themes of competitiveness lost by our continent, dramatically highlighted by Mario Draghi. Or maybe it was about Ukraine and the use of European weapons against Russian territory. Or even about the institutional issues that remain unresolved in the Union, like extending majority voting to prevent a single country from blocking 27. Or finally, they had diverged on the great "digital battle," which Breton had directly addressed by loudly attacking Elon Musk.

So, we thought, on the eve of the presentation of the new Commission—which is expected today, but in Brussels, you never know—could this be an act of democratic transparency before the public? Alas, it wasn’t. Ursula’s staff made it clear that no response would be forthcoming, as the President holds dearly to the “confidential” method with which she is dealing, capital by capital, party by party, with the names and portfolios of her Commission. It was, in short, a mere personal idiosyncrasy, evident for some time. And a two-way political game between Brussels and Paris. Ursula no longer wanted Breton, Macron wanted more significant portfolios for the French commissioner, which the President offered him in exchange for Breton’s head. And so, just a few hours later, the Élysée had named its new choice: the Foreign Minister, Stéphane Séjourné, a Macron loyalist if there ever was one. What seemed like an earthquake turned out to be a mere adjustment in politique d’abord, possibly even clearing the way for today’s appointments. Now that Paris has what it wanted, the liberals can no longer complain about the portfolios of others. The last remaining obstacle is the Slovenian mess—the internal dispute over the ratification of their nominee. But as important as Ljubljana may be, it isn’t enough to stall Europe.

So, paradoxically, the Breton case brings closer the appointment of Raffaele Fitto as Executive Vice-President with the portfolio for Cohesion Funds and the PNRR (the Economy portfolio was never in question, as has been written, and indeed won’t be).

The Italian in Brussels, who was significantly received at the Quirinale yesterday, will thus manage an investment program amounting to around one trillion euros. And while we wait for the 800 billion euros per year that Draghi has indicated as the minimum condition for keeping up with U.S. and Chinese productivity, the amount Fitto will manage is the only large sum of money currently available for spending. Since many countries are behind schedule on their PNRR (far more than Rome), Fitto could even be called upon to play a delicate role as a negotiator with the capitals on revising or rewriting the plans, and who knows, maybe even extending loans to countries. This would increase the weight of the Italian portfolio.

But no matter how much satisfaction the Meloni government may express if things go this way, we certainly won’t be toasting to a turning point in Europe. It’s hard to deny that the Breton case also reveals a deep crisis in European institutions, heightening doubts about their ability to lead the historical process before us. No one missed the fact that an open conflict between a Frenchman and a German woman unfolded in Brussels yesterday, something quite unusual in those chambers. A perhaps minor, but further sign of the weakening of the Franco-German collaboration, without which the Union cannot move forward.

The only leader who had sketched out some sort of vision for Europe in recent years, Emmanuel Macron, now seems weakened both at home and abroad, to the point where he has to switch commissioners mid-course. Scholz, for his part, has never exercised leadership in Europe, and perhaps not even in Germany. Yesterday’s events seem like further confirmation of the great opportunities that the current situation offers Italy to take a leading role in a steering group that is currently lacking high-caliber players. It’s not certain that Giorgia Meloni will succeed, but she should at least try. Fitto as Vice-President would be an undeniable success for Italy. But we must also think about the success of Europe.