The idea of a “United States of Europe” has roots in various historical proposals for European unity.
Early concepts emerged from thinkers like William Penn in the late 17th century and Charles de Saint-Pierre in the early 18th century, advocating for cooperation among European states to prevent wars. Victor Hugo famously popularized the term in 1849, envisioning a European federation akin to the United States of America.
Post-World War II, Winston Churchill revived this concept in 1946, emphasizing unity as essential for peace and stability in Europe.
Therefore, the 21st century concept of the EU was long in the making, and has served its primary purpose. However, with the advent of unforeseen unfettered cross-border migration, it was only a matter of time before an economic crisis created an “others” mentality and for nationalism, no matter how watered down to make it palatable, to rear its ugly head.
Brexit was always going to be a political hot potato, by design, because change is often difficult, so one side had to make it a “hot” issue to achieve that change.
Now that Brexit has been realized, it feels like some people need to move on and figure out a way for it to work best with our allies and trading partners, be they close neighbors or not. It seems like close neighbor trading partners help keep costs down, but if it comes with vindictive caveats, then any nation is bound to reject such caveats and move forward with others, even at some cost.
No country should have to genuflect for another, especially a supposed ally nation or group of nations.
