Live from the Pan-European Institute of Symbolism

The same old pedantry of anti-Americanism as a reliable election plank is back again. I never thought it would come this soon:

Ségolène Royal, the Socialist candidate for the French presidency, wants Britain to choose between being a "vassal" of the United States, and embracing a French-led drive for European integration, her adviser on Europe has revealed.

She went on to admonish people about a diverse set of policies in Europe dividing them between one view which is made to seem shameful for seeming to be linked with the US, and anything a “quartet” of Spain, Italy, Germany, and France that she suggests is the true heart of Europe. In other words, the older, less vibrant parts of it that want to cow the UK and silence the rest. Were ¾ of that quartet not led by Socialists, I’m sure this grand and glorious theory would be less seminally quite different. Maybe call it a “gerrymander” instead of a “quartet”, but either way, they have an intolerance for a range of ideas that would make Stalin blush.

Says EURSOC two of Royal’s quasi-nativist claptrap:

Failure to comply, Savary warns, could lead to the creation of a two-speed EU, rather like that envisaged by president Jacques Chirac when other European "allies" refused to sway under French tutelage.

Royal's people reckon Germany, Italy and Spain would join France in the creation of a "relaunched" Europe - one which they claim they would rather not invoke, but fear they might have to should other nations fail to see things their way.

It remains to be seen if other nations would want to join a France-led bloc. Chirac could always count on the support of his sidekick Gerhard Schröder when he threatened a fast-track EU, but current Chancellor Angela Merkel has been distinctly cooler towards Paris than her predecessor.

Moreover, other personalities will change, or are changing. Tony Blair, who at the outset of his premiership was determined to resolve Britain's dysfunctional relationship with Europe was a surefire bet to be rattled by French mutterings about a fast-track or hard-core EU of fast integrating nations. Blair wanted Britain "at the heart of Europe" - being banished to an outer circle - even if that circle did contain the majority of EU states, the fastest-growing economies, as well as rich northern nations like Denmark, Sweden and Holland - would be more than he could bear.

Funny – wasn’t it the LEFT that said “no!” to the EU constitution?