ABSTRACT
The European Commission is one of the most visible institutions of the European Union (EU). This chapter describes the organizational make-up of the Commission, its political leadership and administrative staff as well as its competencies in order to characterize the politico-administrative actor qualities of the Commission. It focuses on the diverse resources the Commission draws on to influence the EU policies and on the political dynamics that shape decision-making inside the Commission. The chapter discusses the goals which the Commission pursues in EU policy-making and the power it has in shaping EU politics and EU policies. Increased politicization of EU policy-making results from the political mobilization of political parties against EU policies and the European integration project and European citizens' greater scepticism vis-a-vis the integration process. The chapter discusses three possible drivers of intra-institutional conflicts: sectoral and institutional conflicts between Directorates General, on one hand, and national conflicts, as well as party political conflicts among Commissioners, on the other.
