Britannia Radio

This ridiculous allegation was caused by the unholy alliance of European Parliament President [and anti-democratic - sometimes called 'neo-Nazi ]  Hans-Gert Poettering, and German Green MEP [and ex-terrorist]  Daniel Cohn-Bendit who alleged that the anti-Lisbon Treaty vote in Ireland was financially supported by the US Government.  Apart from its obvious  absurdity it was another example of the anti-American virus which pollutes so much of European political life.  When they fail themselves,  their first thought is "How can we blame it on the Americans". 

Good luck to Mr Ganley if he succeeds in getting his defamation case before the Irish Courts!

nb Mr Ganley is not anti-EU as such -- just anti-the-Treaty and the centralising bureaucratic nature of the EU.  Meanwhile reports elsewhere suggest that a deal was struck in Brussels yesterday between the Irish prime minister and other heads of government  by which Ireland will stage a second referendum in October 2009 in return for guarantees on certain aspects of the Treaty which the Irish politicians believe caused the NO vote before!  Since the rejection of the Treaty was caused by more nebulous attitudes brought on by general dislike of the EU's domineering behaviour they may have miscalculated!     It is noteworthy that this agreement has not been announced - just copiously leaked!  

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EU OBSERVER   10.12.08

US congressmen rebuff Irish anti-Lisbon links

PHILIPPA RUNNER

 BRUSSELS - US congress members have poured cold water on a European Parliament query about potential foreign funding for the anti-Lisbon treaty campaign in Ireland, in line with expectations.

"Our congressional colleagues drew our attention to a statement from US deputy secretary of state John Negroponte at Trinity College Dublin on 17 November, completely refuting the suggestion of any US dimension whatsoever," British conservative MEP Jonathan Evans told EUobserver on Wednesday (9 December), after returning from a European Parliament delegation to the US.

"On the contrary, both Democrats and Republicans re-affirmed their keenness to work with a strong and coherent EU, comments recently accentuated by president-elect Obama," he added.

German socialist MEP Helmut Kuhne asked US lawmakers at the meeting in Miami if the US government had in any way supported Irish businessman Declan Ganley, whose Libertas organisation was among groups which campaigned for a No vote in the Irish referendum in June.

The query was made following informal instructions from the office of European Parliament President Hans-Gert Poettering, after German Green MEP Daniel Cohn-Bendit in September suggested that the Pentagon or the CIA may have helped Mr Ganley in order to weaken the EU.

Mr Cohn-Bendit continued in a similar vein last week at a meeting with Czech President Vaclav Klaus, saying Mr Klaus should not have met with Mr Ganley during a recent state visit to Dublin because of the "problematic" financing of the businessman's political activity.

When asked in Dublin last month if the US government had helped Libertas, Mr Negroponte said: "absolutely not. I say that on very good authority, not only being deputy secretary of state but also being a former director of national intelligence."

Mr Ganley's company, Rivada Networks, makes communications equipment for the US government. But he has denied any US link to Libertas and promised to take Irish politicians to court for "grossly defamatory" statements on the subject.

The Irish government is widely expected to run a second referendum on Lisbon in October 2009, after negotiating a package of sweeteners from EU states at this week's summit.

The package is set to include keeping an Irish commissioner and securing declarations to protect Irish neutrality, taxation and anti-abortion laws, which would later be given legal force by being lodged at the UN or tacked on to Croatia's EU accession treaty.

Mr Ganley is likely to remain a force in European politics for some time to come, after Libertas opened an office in Brussels last month as part of his plans to run in European Parliament elections in June.