Our Jerome Goes Anti-Blair in the FT!

The Blair project gains momentum

Financial Times: February 4 2008 19:20

Rumours grow ever stronger that Tony Blair might want to run Europe now that the ex-prime minister has stopped running the UK. The British press reports that Blair met former top aides at Davos last month to plot a pitch for the new job as a permanent president of the European Union. Up till now countries have taken turns in the chair but after the Lisbon treaty is ratified there will be one person at the top for a fixed term.

Yet opposition to a man many see as a warmonger and US stooge is already growing. European Tribune, a website run by the liberals behind the Daily Kos in the US, is starting a petition against his yet-to-be declared candidacy.

It was conceived at the weekend, and by Monday night the petition had been translated into nine languages and two website domains – including stopblair.eu – had been reserved.

"This was a spontaneous idea that caught on among readers," said Jerome Guillet, a Paris-based investment banker who prefers not to reveal his employer. (No, it is not Société Générale.)

"This is not just about the UK: it is about him," he assures residents of Europe’s "semi-detached" member. Indeed he will be fishing for customers there.

Eurotrib.com, which has more than 2,000 users daily, hopes to get 1m signatures. That is the magic figure that, under the very same Lisbon treaty, obliges Brussels to take up the idea and consider acting on it.

Woohoo!  Way to go, Jerome!

As someone who has seen enought of Tony Blair's duplicity, mendacity and warmongering, I'm signing the petition just as soon as it is made available!  Citizens of the EU, unite and save yourselves from more war, more waste and more Blair!

•  A scary proposition...

  here is how the issue was handled in the English parliament:

  Funny, even if my sympathies are with Labour.

  by Tom Enever on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 12:49:46 PM PDT

  •  This was brilliant! I watched twice!

    It made me nostalgic for Mr Hague, who was not terribly successful as Tory party leader but remains one of the most brilliant men in Parliament.  He really knew how to skewer both Blair and Brown.

    by LondonYank on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 12:54:14 PM PDT

  •  This speech makes a very pertinent point

    Blair is already at work trying to extend the powers of the President of the Council even before he holds the post!

    From the European Tribune thread:

    Guardian Unlimited Politics:I'll be president of Europe if you give me the power - Blair

    Blair, currently the Middle East envoy for the US, Russia, EU and the UN, has told friends he has made no final decision, but is increasingly willing to put himself forward for the job if it comes with real powers to intervene in defence and trade affairs.

    In other words, he wants to take over the trade portfolio from the Commission (the job currently carried out by Peter Mandelson) and the "defence" portfolio from the High Representative.

    Note, in fact, that up to now Javier Solana has both been "Secretary General of the Council" (hence the key to providing continuity to the work of the Council athrough the rotating presidencies and probably influencing the agenda) as well as HRCFSP. These two jobs are now being separated and the "Secretary General" is becoming a "chairperson" with representative duties. Blair wants Solana's current job.

    Some Blair allies also say that he now recognises that as envoy in the Middle East he is not going to be allowed to become the key player in furthering Israeli-Palestinian talks this year, and will be reduced to a role of supporting political development in Palestine and boosting its economy.

    It took him this long to figure out the ME envoy gig was a sham, and he wants something bigger.<

    Apart from Blair, two other candidates most often mentioned are the former Austrian chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel, promoted by Germany, and the current Luxembourg prime minister, Jean-Claude Juncker.

    Schüssel is the EPP candidate, and Juncker the PES candidate, I suppose. Juncker might get the support of the small states regardless of political affiliation. Do we consider Schüssel stained by having admitted Jörg Haider's party into his government?

    Is that it? That's a pretty weak field.

    by Migeru on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 02:35:16 PM PDT

•  Puddles the Poodle for EU Pres! [not]

  by bustacap on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 12:50:46 PM PDT

•  Eurocrats

  Luckily I don't think that would ever happen as he did absolutely nothing to advance the European either in Britain or throughout Europe.  No movement on Britain joining the Eurozone, he singlehandedly killed the possibility that Europe could speak with one voice on foreign policy views for the first decade of this century.  

  He's no friend of the EU, and I'll bet the EU isn't any friend of his.  

  by skiddie on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 12:57:33 PM PDT

  •  I think it's an idea...

    that unfortunately has some legs. Whatever anyone's feelings about Blair, he really is a skillful pol.

    His lack of movement toward the EU was probably due to a personal lack of willing, more to do with the British public and his domestic political position at the time.

    I think he would relish the position.

    by Tom Enever on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 01:05:34 PM PDT

    •  probably *not* due...

      by Tom Enever on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 01:06:30 PM PDT

    •  Prodi

      I think you have a good point with his skillful politicking but I think that most of those who have had strong positions in the EU based on their national political careers have led their countries into integration rather than hindering that integration.  Hopefully that's what the Council/Parliament will think.  

      by skiddie on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 02:47:04 PM PDT

  •  But hey

    Look at the great job Bolton is doing at the UN...Wolfowitz at the World Bank...

    Bushies are all about the internationalism.

    (Destroying it utterly, that is.)

    by cskendrick on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 01:06:50 PM PDT

•  Eurocrats

  Luckily I don't think that would ever happen as he did absolutely nothing to advance the European either in Britain or throughout Europe.  No movement on Britain joining the Eurozone, he singlehandedly killed the possibility that Europe could speak with one voice on foreign policy views for the first decade of this century.  

  He's no friend of the EU, and I'll bet the EU isn't any friend of his.  

  by skiddie on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 01:02:01 PM PDT

  •  double-post

    Whoops.  I didn't think that was possible with scoop.  

    by skiddie on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 01:02:44 PM PDT

•  Now if only CSKossacks ever caught on... :)

  by cskendrick on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 01:05:54 PM PDT

•  Good on Jerome

  Why can't these narcissistic third-wayers just go away!

  by chuckvw on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 01:06:33 PM PDT

•  HAHAHAH

  Jerome A Paris has his own tag! he has arrived! :)

  by Silent Lurker on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 01:13:36 PM PDT

•  Can non-Europeans sign?

  I am hotfooting it over to EuroTrib to find out. Woohoo for them, indeed.

  by Mnemosyne on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 01:21:05 PM PDT

  •  We will be allowing it

    We'll ask signers to provide country of nationality and residence. There is a need to separate EU and non-EU signatures, for the following reason.

    As the FT piece says, it is natural to aim for the Treaty of Lisbon's own citizen petition/initiative requirement, which is 1M signatures from EU citizens from a minimum number of member states. However, the petition stresses that the first President of the Council will be a highly symbolic appointment both within Europe and with the rest of the world, so rest-of-world signatures will be valuable as well.

    by Migeru on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 02:26:30 PM PDT

  •  I've posted often there ...

    and valued the discussions.  Often very (VERY) high quality (and demanding).  Plus, some tremendous 'train blogging' ...

    by A Siegel on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 02:30:04 PM PDT

    •  The train blogging

      is excellent, something that we who live in a non-train country can only sigh over and envy.

      by Mnemosyne on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 03:15:02 PM PDT

•  This is quite bizaare ...

  European Tribune, a website run by the liberals behind the Daily Kos in the US, is starting a petition against his yet-to-be declared candidacy.

  Markos (and the front-pagers?) should be interested to learn that he runs Eurotribune.

  by A Siegel on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 02:31:29 PM PDT

  •  Jerome

    hasn't been very successful at getting the press to take note of ET, until now. They seem more interested in his Daily Kos participation.

    Le Monde did a profile of him once (google "Un X d'influence") in which Energize America and Daily Kos are mentioned prominently, and EuroTrib not at all.

    by Migeru on Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 02:34:44 PM PDT