Even more amusing, though spinning away from the central issue ... Germany wants the EU government to exercise broad power of those facets of member government that effect it negatively, yet wants the EU government to stay the hell out of those facets of member government that it needs to control in order to keep its sorry regime in place ...
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BRUSSELS (AFX) - Germany is leading a last-minute bid to stop the EU's new constitution from strengthening the stability and growth pact
The issue will come to a head at Monday's meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg, which is supposed to finalise the constitution for leaders to rubberstamp at their summit on Thursday and Friday
Germany, Italy, Poland and Greece have written a joint letter to the EU's Irish presidency arguing that member states rather than the European Commission should have the greatest say over fiscal discipline
Under the draft constitution, the commission gains the power to propose measures for countries with high deficits. Member states would only be able to reject such proposals by unanimous vote
"We would like to underline once again the great importance we attach to the question as to whether the commission should have within the framework of the excessive deficit procedure the right to submit proposals," the letter said
"We believe that the commission should instead maintain its rights to submit recommendations to the council (of ministers) as originally provided in the stability and growth pact," it said
"Only this would be consistent with the provisions of the stability and growth pact as the recommended measures relate to areas of national competence," it said
"This would be the only way for the council to retain the necessary flexibility in addressing recommendations to member states in the field of economic and financial policy," it said
The Irish presidency is known to be annoyed by the attempt to alter the constitution on the eve of the summit
"Obviously we have been encouraging partners not to be raising new issues, but this is a process whereby ... partners can raise issues," a presidency spokesman said
The last-ditch bid follows an unsuccessful attempt by several EU finance ministers last November to water down the commission's proposed new powers under the constitution
The commission and smaller member states have been opposed to any move to alter this aspect of the constitution
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If they aren't careful the Europeans will find themselves in the same situation as the US, with its constant convoluted state-federal power struggles.
Phaedrus
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>
BRUSSELS (AFX) - Germany is leading a last-minute bid to stop the EU's new constitution from strengthening the stability and growth pact
The issue will come to a head at Monday's meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg, which is supposed to finalise the constitution for leaders to rubberstamp at their summit on Thursday and Friday
Germany, Italy, Poland and Greece have written a joint letter to the EU's Irish presidency arguing that member states rather than the European Commission should have the greatest say over fiscal discipline
Under the draft constitution, the commission gains the power to propose measures for countries with high deficits. Member states would only be able to reject such proposals by unanimous vote
"We would like to underline once again the great importance we attach to the question as to whether the commission should have within the framework of the excessive deficit procedure the right to submit proposals," the letter said
"We believe that the commission should instead maintain its rights to submit recommendations to the council (of ministers) as originally provided in the stability and growth pact," it said
"Only this would be consistent with the provisions of the stability and growth pact as the recommended measures relate to areas of national competence," it said
"This would be the only way for the council to retain the necessary flexibility in addressing recommendations to member states in the field of economic and financial policy," it said
The Irish presidency is known to be annoyed by the attempt to alter the constitution on the eve of the summit
"Obviously we have been encouraging partners not to be raising new issues, but this is a process whereby ... partners can raise issues," a presidency spokesman said
The last-ditch bid follows an unsuccessful attempt by several EU finance ministers last November to water down the commission's proposed new powers under the constitution
The commission and smaller member states have been opposed to any move to alter this aspect of the constitution
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
If they aren't careful the Europeans will find themselves in the same situation as the US, with its constant convoluted state-federal power struggles.
Phaedrus
