The French wire AFP looks at the defeat of the EU referendum through the prism of Vedrinism: “The United States will now have to deal with a European Union that has been weakened by the French rejection of a European draft constitution.”

Remember, Hubert Vedrine is the author of the theory, adopted by Chirac and the poet de Villepin, that the world needs to be bipolar — not “multipolar” — to resist the hyperpuissance of the U.S.

Curiously, the piece argues that it is in the Interests of the United States to deal with United Europe, presumably one led by France.

There’s chatter about whether this faction in the U.S. will prefer to deal with the PRC rather than Europe, and whether that cabal in the U.S. will take Europe serious. Oh, and what will the neocons do?

This, from the AFP piece linked above, is Charles Kupchan, director of European studies at the Council on Foreign Relations:

But, added Kupchan, “there may be certain members of the US government that are not unhappy to see Chirac’s political fortunes take a downturn because of the legacy of the rift over Iraq.”

Kupchan was NSC in the Clinton Administration, for what that’s worth.

It seems clear, however, that it is in the interests of the United States to deal individually with, say, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands than it would be to deal with the whole lot of them under the Franco-German thumb.

[posted this AM at RedState…]