The European Union has, naturellement, a Justice and Home Affairs Council, and that council needs a commissioner to represent it in the EU Commission

National Review, Nov 8, 2004

* The European Union has, naturellement, a Justice and Home Affairs Council, and that council needs a commissioner to represent it in the EU Commission. Got that? Well, Italy's nominee for the post of commissioner was turned down after, in confirmation hearings, he told the council that he considered homosexuality a sin.

The nominee, Signor Rocco Buttiglione (stop that giggling in the back row, please), who is close to the Vatican, averred that he would defend the rights of homosexuals according to European law. It is still open to the commission to accept Sgr. Buttiglione as a commissioner in the teeth of the council's rejection, and they may well do so in order to avoid embarrassing the Italian government. We hope they do; and we hope Sgr. Buttiglione serves long and honorably doing whatever it is that an EU Commission commissioner does.