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Reforming the European Union

Realizing the Impossible
  • Daniel Finke , Thomas König , Sven-Oliver Proksch and George Tsebelis
Language: English
Published/Copyright: 2012
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About this book

For decades the European Union tried changing its institutions, but achieved only unsatisfying political compromises and modest, incremental treaty revisions. In late 2009, however, the EU was successfully reformed through the Treaty of Lisbon. Reforming the European Union examines how political leaders ratified this treaty against all odds and shows how this victory involved all stages of treaty reform negotiations--from the initial proposal to referendums in several European countries.


The authors emphasize the strategic role of political leadership and domestic politics, and they use state-of-the-art methodology, applying a comprehensive data set for actors' reform preferences. They look at how political leaders reacted to apparent failures of the process by recreating or changing the rules of the game. While domestic actors played a significant role in the process, their influence over the outcome was limited as leaders ignored negative referendums and plowed ahead with intended reforms. The book's empirical analyses shed light on critical episodes: strategic agenda setting during the European Convention, the choice of ratification instrument, intergovernmental bargaining dynamics, and the reaction of the German Council presidency to the negative referendums in France, the Netherlands, and Ireland.

Author / Editor information

Daniel Finke is assistant professor of political science at the University of Heidelberg. Thomas König is professor of political science and director of the Research Centre for the Political Economy of Reforms at the University of Mannheim. Sven-Oliver Proksch is a research fellow at the Mannheim Centre for European Social Research. George Tsebelis is the Anatol Rapoport Collegiate Professor of Political Science at the University of Michigan.

Reviews

"[T]his is an excellent book for students of EU politics, particularly for those who want to understand EU Treaty change. The book would also be useful for students of political science in general concerning its up to date methods, which can also be rigorously applied in certain domestic settings."---Senem Aydin-Duzgit, Insight Turkey --- "[T]his is a smart, sophisticated analysis that contains much to admire. There can be no doubt that Reforming the European Union is a great book that all students of treaty revisions in the EU will have to read and engage with."---Mareike Kleine, Review of International Organisation --- "This book is an achievement in terms of the application of formal models and the collection of new data."---Erik Jones, Survival --- "This theoretically rich and empirically driven study by Finke, Konig, Proksch, and Tseblis continues the scholarly discussion on the institutional reforms within the EU."

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  • Publicly Available

    Frontmatter

    i
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  • Publicly Available

    Contents

    vii
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    Figures

    xi
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    Tables

    xiii
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    Acknowledgments

    xv
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    Introduction

    1
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    Chapter one. From the European Convention to the Lisbon Agreement and Beyond: A Veto Player Analysis

    28
    George Tsebelis
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    Chapter two. Revealing Constitutional Preferences in the European Convention

    62
    Sven-Oliver Proksch
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    Chapter three. The Art of Political Manipulation in the European Convention

    76
    George Tsebelis and Sven-Oliver Proksch
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    Chapter four Actors and Positions on the Reform of the Treaty of Nice

    103
    Thomas König and Daniel Finke
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    Chapter five. Why (Unpopular) Leaders Announce Popular Votes

    129
    Thomas König and Daniel Finke
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    Chapter six. Principals and Agents: From the Convention’s Proposal to the Constitutional Treaty

    151
    Thomas König and Daniel Finke
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    Chapter seven. In the Aftermath of the Negative Referendums: The Irish Resistance

    170
    Thomas König and Daniel Finke
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    Conclusion

    188
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    Appendix: Research Design and Methodology

    199
    Thomas König and Sven-Oliver Proksch
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    References

    209
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    Index

    221
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Publishing information
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook published on:
July 29, 2012
eBook ISBN:
9781400842506
Edition:
Course Book
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400842506
eBook ISBN: 9781400842506
Keywords for this book
Politician; Voting; Referendum; Ratification; Treaty of Lisbon; Amendment; Treaty; Treaty of Nice; Intergovernmental Conference; European Convention (1999–2000); Member state; Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe; European Commission; European integration; European Parliament; Voting system; National Parliament (East Timor); Supermajority; Democratic deficit; Legislation; Constitutional amendment; Recommendation (European Union); Jurisdiction; Political party; European Union; Legislature; Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union; Supranational union; Deliberation; Institution; Foreign policy; Enlargement of the European Union; Convention on the Future of Europe; Negotiation; Provision (contracting); Silvio Berlusconi; Result; European Court of Justice; Requirement; Consideration; Veto; Eurobarometer; Impasse; President of the European Union; Political science; Judiciary; Bill (law); Legislator; Preamble; Unanimity; Veto Players; Bargaining power; Lithuania; European Economic Community; Right of initiative (legislative); Policy; Citizenship of the European Union; Treaties of the European Union; Directive (European Union); Majority rule; President of the European Council; Constitution; National interest; Legitimacy (political); Euro Plus Pact; Head of state; Andrew Moravcsik; Bureaucrat; Political history; Coalition government
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