The European Union - a supranational system with its own institutional characteristics and autonomy - has a structure and functional logic which are more similar to those of the US than those of European nation states. Yet, by and large, the EU and the US tend to be analyzed more as potential geopolitical and economic rivals or allies than compared as institutional peers.

By bringing together some of the most influential political scientists and historians to compare the European and American experiences of federalism, this book explores the future development, and seeks a better understanding, of a post-national European Union democracy. The book consists of three parts.

* How the EU has developed and the implications of the process of European federalization
* The features of American federalism, tracing the intellectual debate that led to the approval of the American federal constitution in 1787
* The future of European Union.

Robert A. Dahl concludes the volume, exploring the difficulties of democracy on an international scale. He looks at the prospects for deliberately created democratic institutions and the problems of size, legitimacy and identity.

This unique volume will be of interest to students and scholars studying European politics, American politics, federalism and comparative politics.