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David Cameron's Finest Hour
Townhall.com ^ | December 13, 2011 | Pat Buchanan

Posted on 12/13/2011 4:34:23 AM PST by Kaslin

Prime Minister David Cameron's decision to veto Germany's demand for a new European fiscal union will define his premiership.

More than that, Cameron has raised a banner for patriots everywhere fighting to retain their national independence.

With his no vote on fiscal union, Cameron declared to the EU: "British surrenders of sovereignty come to an end here. And Britain will deny Brussels any oversight authority of any national budgets or any right to sanction EU members."

The euro-skeptic right is understandably ecstatic.

"He Put Britain First," thundered the Daily Mail. "There is now a wonderful opportunity for Britain gradually to loosen itself from the shackles of a statist, over-regulated, anti-democratic, corrupt EU."

The Sun featured Cameron as Winston Churchill, flashing a wartime V-for-Victory sign over the banner headline: "Up Eurs -- Bulldog PM Sticks up for Britain."

The British left, however, almost took to bed.

"Cameron Cuts U.K. Adrift," wailed the Guardian. "The EU Leaves Britain," moaned The Independent.

Coalition partner Nick Clegg of the Liberal Democrats went weak in the knees, claiming the prime minister had left Britain "isolated and marginalized ... hovering somewhere in the mid-Atlantic."

Yet one imagines that Britain will somehow survive.

And while he may have been unaware of the firestorm that would follow his decision, Cameron has exposed the backroom game that is going on in Europe. The Germans have seized on the crisis caused by the fiscal promiscuity of Club Med -- Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal -- to effect a giant leap forward into European fiscal and political union.

Berlin is basically offering the bankrupts a bribe, saying:

"All right, we will bail you out. But, in return, all 17 members of the eurozone shall accept revisions to the EU treaty under which they submit their budgets to Brussels. And if their deficits and/or debts exceed permissible limits, those nations will be sanctioned and fined.

The Germans are exploiting the crisis to impose their model on the eurozone today and all of Europe tomorrow.

Well, some may ask, since Germany is the most successful economy in Europe, why not impose that model?

Answer: For a nation to submit its budget for review by a higher authority, and accept the right of such an authority to alter that budget or punish that nation, is to cease in a fundamental way to be free.

Cameron may seem isolated, but he speaks for tens of millions outside Britain -- Italians, Greeks and others fed up with the imposed austerity, North Europeans fed up with having to bail out Club Med deadbeats who do not work as hard or as long.

Nationalism is on the boil across Europe, and it is impossible to believe the leaders of those 26 EU countries, by cutting some deal with Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy, can bind their countrymen forever to cede veto power over their future budgets to Brussels.

Will Greeks and Italians really accept a decade of austerity to pay off debts larger than the national economy, to banks and bondholders, for hundreds of billion of euros already spent?

Were Italy and Greece U.S. citizens rather than EU countries, both would long ago have declared bankruptcy, been forced to pay what they could, then been released from remaining obligations, while their creditors would have been forced to swallow their losses.

Moreover, there are pragmatic reasons for rejecting the German plan. Europe appears headed for stagnation or recession. Yet under the fiscal union scheme, virtually all eurozone nations would have to raise value-added and income taxes to balance budgets where the domestic welfare states consume almost all of the national economy.

Does raising taxes make sense in a recession? Would it not risk deepening the recession, raising debt-to-GDP ratios, forcing interest rates to rise to attract investors to new national bonds as old bonds came due?

All of this raises the larger question. Can the eurozone survive? And if it cannot, can the EU?

Given the hostile attitude of Greeks, Italians and many others to years of austerity to pay back debts, given the growing reluctance of the European Central Bank, Germany and Northern Europe to bailing out deadbeats, given the lack of resources available, are not defaults in the eurozone almost inevitable?

And if that happens, given the size of the debts, the result would be like the collapse of Lehman Brothers raised to the third power.

Trillions of euros of debt that appear today as assets on the balance sheets of giant banks and within the portfolios of millions of investors would vanish overnight.

Like the "fire bell in the night" Thomas Jefferson heard in 1820, a harbinger of civil war, Cameron's declaration that European fiscal and political union goes forward, only without Britain, may be a harbinger of the breakup that is coming.

And if the eurozone collapses, and the EU follows, what, then, is Europe -- other than a geographic expression?


TOPICS: Editorial; Foreign Affairs; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: davidcameron; eurobanking; europeandebtcrisis; europeanunion; germany; unitedkingdom
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1 posted on 12/13/2011 4:34:28 AM PST by Kaslin
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To: Kaslin
***And if the euro-zone collapses, and the EU follows, what, then, is Europe — other than a geographic expression?***

The European Union was an academic exercise in order to compete with the United “States”, economically, technologically, monetarily and fiscally. National borders were relaxed to accommodated tourism and foreign exchange. The UK made severe adjustments to ‘fit in’.

The only benefit to the UK was that English is spoken throughout Europe. Otherwise, it was a repeat of the United Nations forcing the UK to relinquish all of its territories and possessions (sovereignty)

A better enterprise - to have invited England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales to become the 51st, 52nd, 53rd and 54th States.

2 posted on 12/13/2011 4:47:16 AM PST by sodpoodle ( Gingrich - flying solo - without congressional baggage!!!)
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To: Kaslin

Patrick J. at his finest.


3 posted on 12/13/2011 4:48:36 AM PST by Travis McGee (www.EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.com)
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To: Kaslin
"The Germans are exploiting the crisis to impose their model on the eurozone today and all of Europe tomorrow."

Perhaps if countries like Greece, Spain and Portugal weren't such deadbeats, the Germans wouldn't be in a position to exploit them. If I were Germany, I wouldn't bail them out in the first place.
4 posted on 12/13/2011 4:52:25 AM PST by Old Teufel Hunden
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To: sodpoodle
"A better enterprise - to have invited England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales to become the 51st, 52nd, 53rd and 54th States."

Is that kind of like the SEC inviting Texas A&M into their conference? If that's the case, would getting an invite to join the EU be like when the Big East invites someone in?
5 posted on 12/13/2011 5:11:45 AM PST by Old Teufel Hunden
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To: Old Teufel Hunden

I have no idea;)

Joining the EU was stupid for the UK. Sold their soul for a common currency.

Being part of the US would be mutually beneficial - we would get King William and the UK would get Lady GaGag;)


6 posted on 12/13/2011 5:17:03 AM PST by sodpoodle ( Gingrich - flying solo - without congressional baggage!!!)
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To: Kaslin

Good article. Thank you.

Does anybody else smell a Soros stench emanating from somewhere in this mess?


7 posted on 12/13/2011 5:19:29 AM PST by GatĂșn(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer) (")
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To: sodpoodle
"Joining the EU was stupid for the UK. Sold their soul for a common currency."

Britian is in the EU, but they are not a part of the eurozone. They are still on the pound. Being in the EU IMO is beneficial to Britian. It acts as a giant free trade zone for them, plus there's far less restrictions on passports, travel and stuff like that. One of the bad things is that laws are passed that could affect Britian by lawmakers elected from other countries. Fortunately, as of right now those laws do not interfere with national sovereignty type stuff as I understand it. However, that could change in the future.
8 posted on 12/13/2011 5:26:20 AM PST by Old Teufel Hunden
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To: Kaslin

France has a Presidential election next April (first round) and May (run-off.) On present evidence, Sarkozy will lose to the Socialist Hollande and may be eliminated in the first round by Marine LePen. LePen wants to get out of the EU and Hollande wants “to protect France’s sovereignty.”

The Sarkozy-Merkel alliance may be short-lived.


9 posted on 12/13/2011 5:30:37 AM PST by Malesherbes (- Sauve qui peut)
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To: Old Teufel Hunden

Thanks for the clarification.

I understood the UK conversion to metric (weights & measurement, temperature, currency exchange etc.,) were all tied to simplification for joining the EU.

Still have farthings, ha’pennies, pennies, thre’pennies, sixpenses, shillings, florins, half-crowns and guineas;)


10 posted on 12/13/2011 5:44:31 AM PST by sodpoodle ( Gingrich - flying solo - without congressional baggage!!!)
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To: sodpoodle

“A better enterprise - to have invited England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales to become the 51st, 52nd, 53rd and 54th States.”

Or to retain their own sovereignty. And besides, the US Constitution does not allow for the recognition of royalty. These countries have too many traditions and too deep of a history. They need to remain independent.


11 posted on 12/13/2011 6:19:03 AM PST by wolfman23601
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To: wolfman23601

****the US Constitution does not allow for the recognition of royalty.****

I was being silly - but your point is a good one.

The Pompous one, the Kennedys, Clintons, Career Congress, media, & academia aristocracy need a similar reminder.


12 posted on 12/13/2011 6:33:19 AM PST by sodpoodle ( Gingrich - flying solo - without congressional baggage!!!)
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To: sodpoodle
"Thanks for the clarification."

No problemo. Think of the eurozone as a sort of subset of the EU. They all share the same monetary policy but each country still has it's own fiscal policy, creates its own budget and spending etc... Which IMO can't work. This seems to be what Germany wants to eliminate and tie the fiscal policies of these countries closer together by having their budgets monitored in Brussells. But if a country does not control it's own monetary or fiscal policy, is it really a country? That's why I see the eurozone eventually collapsing but the European Union can still continue. With a lot of bad feelings between the countries IMO.
13 posted on 12/13/2011 7:00:22 AM PST by Old Teufel Hunden
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To: Malesherbes
"LePen wants to get out of the EU and Hollande wants “to protect France’s sovereignty."

Does she want to get out of the EU or off the euro (i.e. out of the Eurozone)? IMO, the EU is beneficial for it's countries as long as it sticks to things like free trade, passports and travel. If it ever starts to get into things like foreign policy, raising armies and things that a sovereign country has control over, then it would be a bad thing. As far as I know right now it does not. I don't like how they elect lawmakers from each country to be part of this European Parliment. I don't know what kind of laws they can enact but I think as of right now it just has to do with the trade regulations and stuff like that. But you know how lawmakers are. I would be very afraid of them expanding their powers.
14 posted on 12/13/2011 7:08:15 AM PST by Old Teufel Hunden
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To: Old Teufel Hunden

” plus there’s far less restrictions on passports, travel and stuff like that.”

It doesn’t. We didn’t sign up for the Schengen Agreement so it’s full borders and passports into and out of the UK just as it is in the US.


15 posted on 12/13/2011 7:32:03 AM PST by Caulkhead
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To: Old Teufel Hunden

“IMO, the EU is beneficial for it’s countries as long as it sticks to things like free trade, passports and travel”

It doesn’t though does it? The EU dictates some 75% of all the laws enacted by the national parliaments of its’ member states and punishes those who decent.

We used to have a perfectly good free trade group across Europe called the EEC, but the politicos had to grasp more power and try to turn it into a German run federal super-state and we are currently seeing the results of that greed for power and political hubris.


16 posted on 12/13/2011 7:38:28 AM PST by Caulkhead
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To: Caulkhead
"We didn’t sign up for the Schengen Agreement so it’s full borders and passports into and out of the UK just as it is in the US."

Why would you not want to sign up for that agreement? Unless of course there's other crappy things in there that gives up British sovereignty. Or are there undesirables that you may have to allow travel into Britian by signing up for this?

On the European Parliment, I admit I don't know or understand the full extent of their power. Like all politicians, I'm sure they're trying to grab for more power so it might be best just to get completely out of the EU.
17 posted on 12/13/2011 8:35:39 AM PST by Old Teufel Hunden
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To: sodpoodle

A better enterprise - to have invited England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales to become the 51st, 52nd, 53rd and 54th States.””

That should confuse Obama—& we still have 3 more to find to total his ‘57 states’.


18 posted on 12/13/2011 1:41:16 PM PST by ridesthemiles
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To: Travis McGee; Kaslin

CAmeron’s finest hour would be to take Britiann out of the EU/Fourth Reich. At the very least, he could allow the British serfs to vote on their new servitude, something he has pointedly refused to do.


19 posted on 12/13/2011 4:03:59 PM PST by rmlew ("Mosques are our barracks, minarets our bayonets, domes our helmets, the believers our soldiers.")
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To: Old Teufel Hunden

My reference to the Schengen Agreement was to correct your assertion that the EU had made crossing our borders easier - it hasn’t.


20 posted on 12/14/2011 3:30:04 AM PST by Caulkhead
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