Can This Woman Tame Europe’s Game of Thrones?
Ursula von der Leyen needs to reform the European Commission. She should start with the process that put her in charge.
Good luck with that.
Photographer: Thierry Monasse/Getty Images
If she’s confirmed as the new president of the European Commission this week, German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen will have no shortage of pressing tasks on her agenda. Among the most urgent should be reforming the dysfunctional process that got her there.
As the head of the European Union’s executive branch, the commission presidency is a powerful office. Its occupant sets the EU’s policy agenda, allocates key portfolios, and directs a civil service of more than 30,000. The next president will face challenges including a looming Brexit deadline, slowing EU economic growth, a trade dispute with the U.S., and widening disagreements about further integration — not to mention the possibility of another euro crisis.