(By Denis Greenan).
Centre-right leader Silvio
Berlusconi kept firing on all cylinders as he tried to make up
ground in the European Parliament elections Tuesday, aiming a
fresh barrage against Italian President Giorgio Napolitano for
alleged bias in abetting a "coup" against the ex-premier.
Berlusconi quipped that he saw 'deep red' when he was
presented with a photo of Napolitano, 87, on one of his TV
channels Tuesday.
The Forza Italia (FI) leader, 77, said he was reminded of
the title of Dario Argento's cult slasher film Profondo Rosso
because of the alleged leftist leanings of Napolitano, an
ex-Communist, whom he again slammed for not giving him a pardon
on an office ban for tax fraud.
The president "had a moral duty to pardon me and his (lack
of) impartiality will be judged by history", he said,
reiterating claims the head of State had overstepped his role in
helping the centre left against its old foe.
Berlusconi has frequently accused Napolitano, the titular
head of the Italian judiciary, along with Italy's supreme court,
of being part of a an alleged leftist plot to drive him from
office - although he has stopped short of backing a drive by the
anti-establishment 5-Star Movement (M5S) of
comic-turned-political provocateur Beppe Grillo to have the
president impeached.
In his latest pyrotechnical performance, Berlusconi also
levelled his guns at Grillo, who has stolen much of his fellow
populist's thunder in inveighing against the ill effects of
career politicians and the euro, widening the gap between the
M5S and FI to about eight points in most polls ahead of the May
25 EP vote, both well behind 39-year-old Premier Matteo Renzi's
Democratic Party (PD).
Berlusconi compared Grillo, 65, to Adolf Hitler and said
the Italian people should fear him.
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