Changing the Rules in the Middle of the Game

That's exactly what the EU wants to do regarding the Lisbon Treaty. After the defeat of the proposed EU constitution in popular referendums in France and the Netherlands, the EU decided to repackage that failed Constitution as the Treaty of Lisbon. According to the rules set out by the EU, ratification would only be assured if the treaty was passed by all 27 nations in the EU. 26 nations refused a popular vote, leaving Ireland as the only one with a popular referendum. Yet again, the EU lost in a popular referendum.

So how do the proponents of the treaty respond? By attempting to change the rules. Story from The Telegraph.

Future referendums will be ignored whether they are held in Ireland or elsewhere, Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, the architect of the European Union Constitution said.

The former President of France drafted the old Constitution that was rejected by French and Dutch voters three years ago before being resurrected as the Lisbon EU Treaty, itself shunned by the Irish two weeks ago.

Mr Giscard d'Estaing told the Irish Times that Ireland's referendum rejection would not kill the Treaty, despite a legal requirement of unanimity from all the EU's 27 member states.

"We are evolving towards majority voting because if we stay with unanimity, we will do nothing," he said.

"It is impossible to function by unanimity with 27 members. This time it's Ireland; the next time it will be somebody else."

If the requirement for unanimity was such a problem why was it not brought up before the referendum? Simple, because the EU didn't think it would be a problem. After the defeat of the referendum in Ireland, the EU decided that following the rules was too burdensome. In other words, legality is all right if it doesn't get in our way. Not very democratic.

This is nothing but a power grab. The EU wants to control Europe as a single entity, and they don't care about how they do it. They try to act like they're doing it for the good of the people, but no intelligent person should believe that nonsense. The EU believes it is above the law and therefore any government of Europe controlled by the EU is never going to be democratic. The best adjective that describes the EU is authoritarian.

(Hat tip: Gates of Vienna)