Picking Your Analogies

The fiscal crisis in Greece has proven an excellent test of the moral fiber of the EU, and it now appears that a clutch of wealthier nations, led by Germany, are one way or another going to bail the country out. For those in favor of increased European integration, that is a huge step. Yet it has also revealed where European civil servants stand in the EUs ongoing identity crisis. Consider the analogy made by Jean-Claude Trichet, head of the European Central Bank, as quoted by the Times:

After being peppered with questions about Greece on Thursday, Mr. Trichet responded: “I doubt that, in a press conference, Ben Bernanke would have a question on Alaska or Massachusetts.”

It turns out this is bad reporting: the EU is actually legally barred from staging any kind of Federal Reserve-style bailout of an individual European state even if it wanted to. In any event, as the Times goes on to point out, the EU is still a long way from becoming "the United States of Europe" -- the central government is still far too weak.  US states maintained strong regional identities until the end of the Civil War, 75 years after the Constitutional Convention.  The Lisbon Treaty entered into force two months ago. It is going to take many more confidence-building measures like a coordinated, multi-state bailout to build a strong, central European government.