By Alvise Armellini
ROME (Reuters) – US President Joe Biden must drop his re-election bid or Donald Trump will definitely return to the White House, former Prime Minister of Italy Matteo Renzi he said on Wednesday.
Renzi, 49, led a centre-left government from 2014 to 2016 and was close to the government led by the former President Barack Obamaduring which Biden was vice president. In 2016, he was hosted at the White House for a lavish state dinner.
“Biden will go down in history as an American president who has done many things that have had a great impact,” Renzi told Reuters. “At the same time, if Trump does not leave, he will give him the greatest gift he can ever receive.”
With Biden as his opponent, Trump had an “open goal” for the presidency, Renzi said, using a football analogy. He said Democrats still had time to build a credible campaign with another candidate.
“If they choose Joe, I fear it will be a losing battle,” he said.
Renzi said a Trump presidency would have “unpredictable” consequences.
“Democrats must do everything they can now to not lose this fight. And the only way is to change horses,” he said.
Romano ProdiAnother former Italian prime minister and former president of the European Commission, was less blunt but still concerned. Prodi, 84, three years older than Biden, has long since retired from active politics.
“The only person who can decide whether Biden should resign is Biden, but I watched the debate and I am very, very concerned. I see that there is a growing concern about the situation among Americans, and I share that concern,” he told Reuters.
Enrico Letta, a third former center-left Italian prime minister, agreed, telling Reuters that he believes Biden should “pass the baton to someone younger” who can counter the “mortal danger” of another Trump presidency.
(Additional reporting by Gavin Jones and Angelo Amante; editing by Bernadette Baum)
