The Politicisation Of The European Commission S Presidency

The EU's pluralistic, nonhierarchical system of multilevel governance lacks clear structures of both government and opposition. According to the EU treaties, the presidency of the European Commission is thus not explicitly expected to exercise political leadership. However, the position cannot effectively be exercised without any demonstration of such leadership due to its many leadership functions. Examining this curious mix of strong political demands, weak institutional powers, and need for political leadership, this book systematically analyses the political leadership performance of the presidents of the European Commission throughout the process of European integration. The basic argument is that Commission presidents matter not only in the process of European integration, but that their impact varies according to how the different incumbents deal with the institutional structure and the situational circumstances, and thus their available strategic choices. The primary research question is thus, What makes political leadership in European governance successful and to what extent (and why) do Commission presidents differ in their leadership performance? In addressing this question, this book departs from existing research on EU leadership, which has to date often analysed either the EU's institutional structure and its potential for leadership or mainly focused on only the most recent incumbents in case study analyses. Focusing on the multiterm European Commission presidents Walter Hallstein, Jacques Delors, and Jos� Manuel Barroso, this book conceptualizes their political leadership as a performance, and thus systematically analyzes their agenda-setting, mediative-institutional, and public outreach performance over the entire course of their presidential terms.

This work is the first systematic study of the presidency of the European Commission. Drawing upon cases of attempted leadership by Jacques Delors, the Commission President from 1985-95, it examines the leadership capacity of the office-holder. This points to the inherently shared and contingent nature of Commission President's leadership in a Union where the leadership sources are widely dispersed. While this is essentially an empirical study, Endo addresses some of the theoretical implications of its findings and resulting issues.

Drawing on exclusive interviews with Jacques Delors himself, this comprehensive, accessibly written study of his life and Commission presidency is an invaluable resource for all those interested in European and French Politics. Debunking populist images and myths about him, this book presents a balanced examination of a widely misinterpreted political figure. This book also raises important issues such as: the role of individual leaders in contemporary politics the legitimacy of the European Union as a political system.

The challenges that have been facing the European Union in recent years have given rise to the question: who leads the EU? This book offers a systematic analysis of political leadership in the EU. This volume offers a theoretical and conceptual analysis of political leadership in the EU. It deals with questions such as what kind of leadership is there in the different domains (such as climate change or central banking). It also examines how various EU institutions (European Commission, European Parliament) exert or have exerted leadership. Furthermore, it examines the role of the presidents of some of these institutions, such as the European Commission the European Council, the European Central Bank, but also of selected national leaders. Although the book does not advance a single leadership concept, the findings of the individual case studies show that the EU is by no means leaderless. The chapters originally published as a special issue in the Journal of European Integration.

In 2009, the Lisbon Treaty became effective within the European Union, substantially changing the existing institution through its amendments, and this book investigates how the rotating presidency is affected by the Lisbon Treaty and how the Belgian presidency--the first under the new rule book--has implemented changes for the 21st century. It shows that Belgium has created a new style of rotating presidency, going back to the basics of chairing the Council, while adjusting to its new political and institutional environment and setting precedents for the future. This examination will appeal to students and scholars of European Union politics well beyond the Member States.

The primary goal of this book is to trace the European Commission's strategies of dealing with the politicisation of EU legislation. In a case study on President Jean-Claude Juncker's term of office, the authors of this volume analyse how the EU Commission set and advanced certain political priorities between 2014 and 2019. The analysis focuses on the ten political priorities which the Juncker Commission retained in all of its annual work programmes from its inception onwards, starting with its self-proclaimed role as a 'political commission'. However, this study's assessment of the 'politicisation' of integration policy is ambiguous: On the one hand, the Juncker Commission deliberately adopted politicised issues and tried to use them as opportunities for political leadership as well as to hone its own institutional profile. On the other hand, controversies and crises repeatedly forced the EU Commission to resort to damage control.

The most current and issues-based textbook of its kind on the market, European Union Politics provides a comprehensive and authoritative overview of EU theories, institutions, policies, and history. Revised and updated in light of current events--including the Greek financial crisis--theaccessible and wide-ranging nature of the fifth edition makes this the ideal starting point for students new to this evolving subject.