Passions for and against Tony Blair’s candidacy as EU president grow high. The Daily Telegraph brings forward five reasons why Blair should not be EU President. NEWS.am presents extracts from the article dated Oct. 29.

Argument 1

“No leader in modern times has done more to undermine British national sovereignty than Tony Blair. His decision to introduce European law into British courts through the Human Rights Act was an unforgivable blow to the independence of the British judiciary.”

Argument 2

“As EU President, Blair would be the unelected representative of 500 million Europeans, including 61 million Britons who are likely to remove his Labour Party from power at the next election. To get an idea of just how ludicrous this scenario is, can you imagine the Obama administration backing George W. Bush as the president of a pan-American union encompassing North, South and Central America? It would simply never happen.”

Argument 3

“Blair is perfectly capable of making the EU a very powerful player inside the Washington Beltway, something it has never achieved in the past. And this will be done at the expense of London and the Special Relationship.”

Argument 4

“Blair will deliver a Herculean effort to make the EU what it has never really been – a powerful player at the negotiating table that is seen as a force to be reckoned with rather than an emperor with no clothes. Unfortunately for Britain, Blair, a formidable public speaker and negotiator, will give an EU foreign policy the added credibility that Brussels craves.”

Argument 5

“Most importantly, a Blair presidency will add a huge stamp of legitimacy to a central plank of the European Project, and all the trappings of power that come with it. British conservatives, and all who care about the future of Britain as a nation state, should oppose the very concept of a European Union president.”