E Pluribus Europa? Assessing the Viability of the European Union by Analogy with the Early American Republic‪.‬

Introduction: The Neglected Study of EU Viablility The sui generis interpretation dominant in mainstream European Union (EU) studies is often accompanied by a blithe assumption that the EU has the political wherewithal and willpower to keep overcoming its almost endemic constitutional status. Hailed as unique among international treaty organizations, it has even been described by one commentator as the embodiment of a "new European Dream" that "dares to suggest a new history, with an attention to quality of life, sustainability, and peace and harmony." (1) If deficiencies or deficits are identified in this polity, then it often assumed that there is an institutional solution: increasing the power of the European Parliament, establishing an EU senate to represent member state governments in a second parliamentary chamber, or, perhaps, having a directly elected president of the European Commission (an EU executive). (2) What is not problematized is, first, how the EU's political system has resolved previous crises and, second, what this suggests about its potential for greater centralization. Simply put, how and why is the EU viable as a form of political organization?