The 500 million people of Europe have a new president, not one of them was troubled with the requirement to cast a vote.  Actually that is not quite true, 27 politicians decided unanimously who to appoint. Soviet Politburos invariably came to unanimous consensus decisions, it is a characteristic of  undemocratic systems that deals are struck and favours traded.  Baroness Ashton, the new British High Representative has never been democratically elected to any position, ever.  The perception is that she owes her rise to high office in EUGov to being married to Blair admiring, Labour leaning pollster Peter Kellner of YouGov.

With a Belgian President, plus a capital and parliament in Brussels, the EU has some of the attributes of a new Belgian empire…