The European Union (EU) represents a model of “post-democratic” governance and “post-liberal” ideology. Originally power was to reside with the member-states represented in the Council of the European Union, but for decades most of the authority has been exercised by the European Commission (EC), the bureaucracy in Brussels. Indeed, legislation is initiated by the EC. The Council and the European Parliament can only refuse to accept policies already formulated by the EC (something they almost never do) or they can amend EC legislative proposals through a rather complicated process. No wonder one of Europe’s most prominent sociologists, Ralf Dahrendorf (former commissioner of the EC, current member of the House of Lords) stated that the European Union’s decision-making process is “an insult to democracy.” He went so far as to say that “it is not just a joke to say that if the EU itself applied for accession to the EU, it could not be admitted because it is insufficiently democratic.”

Bedenkt man, was für Köpfe die FDP damals hatte und wie wenig sie heute geehrt werden, dann stimmt mich das etwas traurig. Man zeigt Scheel, Genscher und Graf Lambsdorff gerne auf den Parteitagen, aber warum nicht Werner Maihofer? Und auch wenn Hildegard Hamm-Brücher nicht mehr in der FDP ist, sollte man ihr das Gefühl geben, dass sie zur liberalen Familie gehört. Und bei Gehart Baum hat man das Gefühl, dass er nur von Sabine Leuttheusser-Schnarrenberger unterstützt wird. Warum nicht von der gesamten Parteiführung?