Elections US and EU styles

We have been variously interested, perplexed, puzzled or sickened by the circus in America. Bob Hope once described a presidential election in his day as the "evil of two lessers", and we know what he meant. "Are these the best that the largest democracy in the world can offer to produce its head of state?" The ethos is strange to us, some of the goings repugnant. One thing you can say, however, is that it is done in the open, with every citizen having a chance to cast his or her vote.

What is happening in Europe in finding its leaders is rather different. We would not have known that there is a process ongoing, if experts had not told us. It is going on behind closed doors or over business lunches, and we the citizens have no vote, mainly because whoever is chosen will not make much difference as all candidates subscribe to the "project". In due course, through some communique, we shall be informed who our leaders are.

The offices at stake are
1) President of the Council, the new post set up by the Lisbon "not a constitution". "The election"is a power struggle of vested Government interests, with Britain, France and Germany able to throw much weight about.

2) President of the European Commission - at present Manuel Barroso. The (re)election will be in November. Again, there is no popular vote, merely Government bargaining.

3) President of the European Parliament - at present Hans-Gert Poettering. The next office holder seems to have been decided already, by political considerations within the Parliamentary groups, but has yet to be revealed.

4) EU "foreign minister", called "High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy", to conceal the fact that Brussels wishes to take over external affairs from member states.

Behind the scenes, affected by the ambitions of powerful men and women, especially commissioners and prime ministers, and by protracted discussions and bargaining in "smoke filled rooms", the next office holders are to be determined.

Which would you prefer - the open, democratic, US system with all its faults, or the secret, furtive horse trading of relatively few influential people, and with no input from the 450 million inhabitants of EU member countries?