So did, at the end of the day, all the acrimonious debates on the Portuguese’s reelection in times of economic crisis and unsolved climate issues turn out to be vain? Not exactly! The lively debate, discussed not only in Brussels’

Barroso during the vote in the European Parliament (Source: http://www.presstv.ir)

more or less closed political circles but also broadely covered by the media all over Europe and numerous blogs on the net, did the EU a favour by enhancing its democratic profile. No – did Mr Barroso’s fellow-conservatives say: Quite the opposite, it paralysed the EU at a crucial moment. But this is nothing but disguised campaigning.

From an impartial point of view, the whole nomination and reelection process had two merits: First, it spoiled the Member States’ plan to discretely reappoint the weak President at the head of the Commission in order to preserve their own influence in EU decision-making. Secondly, it aroused a broad democratic debate within and outside the institutions that partly created what the EU bitterly needs: a continent-wide public sphere where citizens, media and politicians discuss key decisions. This summer, a lot of people all over Europe finally saw that the EU executive is not the stooge of the Member States, but a political leader who needs a democratic majority to be elected. That’s quite a step forward rather than an impediment for the functioning of the EU.

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1. Don’t keep calm, Mr Barroso! Keep calm – that’s what the advisors of José Manuel Durão Barroso, President of the European Commission, wrote on little papers that they discretely handed over to their boss during the torrid hearing yesterday afternoon at the Greens/EFA Group in the European Parliament. But actually it was precisely because he didn’t stay calm for once [...]...
2. A president with balls? There is no doubt that José Manuel Durão Barroso will remain the European Commission’s president for a 2nd term. As European newspapers report, political leaders of most EU members states and the biggest political families sitting in the European Parliament are ok with Barroso keeping the job. Is Mr. Barroso the president we need? Does he [...]...
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Barroso and Cohn-Bendit at yesterday's hearing (source: The Greens/EFA)

Barroso is currently conducting sort of a personal election campaign, fighting for the approval of his candidature by the European Parliament. The only problem is: A large share of the MEPs feels that his achievements do not justify his reelection at the head of the EU administration. That’s why he now tries to convince the socialists (S&D), the liberals (ALDE) and the Greens to support his candidature, appearing this week in front of all parliamentary groups to defend his recently published reelection manifesto.

What was remarkable was the temper with which the (usually dull) Commission President defended his political position (have a look at the full video) – but at the same time, his fundamental problem once more appeared clearly: A lack of new ideas and real leadership. There was not a single innovative or concrete sentence about what difference he could make at the top of the EU, always using the Member States’ resistance as an excuse for every failure or lack of ambition. The only real news: He plans to set up a Commissioner for the fight against climate change and another one in charge of Human Rights and non-discrimination.

“I believe in open markets”, he repeated constantly. That’s barely new and cannot be believed to be a renewed European narrative to capture the citizens’ interest or rebuild trust in the EU institutions (have a look at the memos to the new Commision that the think tank Bruegel presented last week).

All in all, I am sorry to say: Mr Barroso, you may have convinced us of your enthusiasm for keeping your job, but you have definitely not conquered our minds with fresh ideas or the will to overcome short-sighted interests in the Member States. That’s not enough to be our captain in disturbed waters!

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Is Mr. Barroso the president we need? Does he have the charisma Europe needs in times of political and economic crisis? Did he show the right abilities one needs to cope with difficult situations? What do Europeans think when they see Barroso’s face? Who remembers the president’s successes?

It’s cruel to say but Barroso’s image is mostly linked to the three failed referenda. Fiasco in France, defeat in the Netherlands, flop in Ireland and resulting clumsy struggle for Europe (‘s face?). Why not get some fresh air? Why not pick a young “European statesman” à la Delors?

Right, too late for such a proposal!

Still, having a real emperor also sounds like a cool thing…

The picture comes from the EC Audiovisual Service: http://ec.europa.eu/avservices/home/index_en.cfm

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- Little boy, does it always rain in your country?

- I don’t know, sir, I’m only eleven.

This joke tells a lot about the weather in Belgium. Perhaps it doesn’t rain that much in this country, but the weather here is often gray, cloudy, gloomy, sunless. Yes, we often have BAD weather in Brussels, dude. Foolish Europhiles that we are, we’re waiting for a directive that would change this. No decisions or recommendations, please, these are for pussies. We want a weather directive fixing once and for all the good weather in Belgium (or at least in Brussels!). A regulation would actually also do it.

It reminds me of a news item I’d read about two years ago. It was about an announcement in the Polish parliament. The thing was read to the Polish MP’s and stated that parliamentarians were welcome to attend a special Mass where they would pray for rain (in was a period of drought in Poland).

I don’t know if the attendance was high and whether the initiative was bore any fruit but we definitely should use this method in Brussels.  Let’s send a solemn letter to the European Parliament, the Commission and all the other Brussels-based EU institution asking their workers to make a break, gather for an hour on the Place Robert Schuman and join their spiritual forces in an effort to bring some sun to our beloved city. (No doubt Barroso and Fischer Boel will be the best candidates to preside the shamanic rituals.) The EC complains that people don’t realise how Europe influences their daily life. Just get us some sun and you’ll see Eurobarometer indicators skyrocketing!

Here’s the clip with the communiqué about the Mass for rain:

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