French voters did themselves a favor -- and Americans, too -- on Sunday, when they voted down a single constitution for a homogenized Europe.

 As France debated the issue, it became clear that a major aim of the proposed European Union constitution was to begin building a new power bloc that could counter the United States and neutralize those peoples within Europe who persist in believing they share interests and values with the American people when it comes to the conduct of politics among nations.

 It would have done this by subordinating all 25 member nations to a single foreign and security policy bureaucracy.

 The proposed European Union constitution would have created a single European president and a single European foreign minister. European voters would not have been allowed to directly elect these chief executives of their new over-government, however. Instead, a council made up of European heads of state would have chosen them, subject to the approval of the European Parliament.

 The purpose of the new European president and foreign minister would have been to conduct a single European foreign and security policy.

 "The Union," said the draft constitution, "shall have competence to define and implement a common foreign and security policy, including the progressive framing of a common defense policy."

 "Member States," it said, "shall actively and unreservedly support the Union's common foreign and security policy in a spirit of loyalty and mutual solidarity and shall comply with the Union's action in this area. They shall refrain from action contrary to the Union's interests or likely to impair its effectiveness."

 "Member States," it also said, "shall make civilian and military capabilities available to the Union for the implementation of the common security and defense policy, to contribute to the objectives defined by the Council."

 As the constitution was drafted, these powers were hedged by providing that decisions be made unanimously by member nations on foreign policy questions. That would have either rendered the EU foreign-policy apparatus a paper tiger, similar to the U.N. Security Council, or led to future changes fully and effectively consolidating foreign-policy power in the central European government.

 If the latter occurred, the EU could direct all of Europe to side with, or against, America in future international crises.

 One strong clue of the direction the EU might take with such power can be found on the business pages of Tuesday's newspapers, where it was reported that the United States will sue the EU in the World Trade Organization because of the EU's ongoing subsidies for Airbus. Continued...