I think it's just wishful thinking by some, in and out of his coaltion. He will never ever step down, but he's increasingly seen as a liability by his own allies; his failures are becoming too big to ignore. GWB has the "honourable" escape route (after two mandates, he has to step down), B could be Presidente del Consiglio forever, until he manages to pass a law introducing the direct election for the President and gets himself in the office...