I’ve read a bit about Tony Blair and the presidency of Europe on the Corner. And that put me in mind of a moment at Davos last winter. Here is how I recorded it in my NRO journal:

Lunch is a pretty starry affair: It is a Philanthropy Roundtable that includes [Bill] Clinton, Tony Blair, Bill Gates, Muhammad Yunus, and Richard Branson — Sir Richard Branson, I should say. The host, Victor Pinchuk, introduces Blair, calling him “the most charismatic European leader” (if I have heard him correctly). Blair says, “First of all, thank you for calling me a European.” Many laughs, a charming remark.
But I think later: I, personally, would rather be a Briton than a European. For that matter, I would rather be a Frenchman, an Italian, etc., than a European.
But those are questions for another time. . . .