It was the Brussels equivalent of pistols at dawn.
Pious adherence to public unity — a watchword among European Commission officials — was briefly cast aside Tuesday in a mild spat between the current head of the EU’s climate department and its former trade lead.
While the exchange was a gourmet meal compared to the dry food the EU executive typically serves in public, it was far more notable for what it revealed about a raging debate over the past five years of fervent environmental regulation: The Brussels elite was openly quibbling over what was recently unimpeachable climate orthodoxy.
Tuesday’s dispute took place in the polite environs of LinkedIn. The Commission’s current Director General for Climate Action Kurt Vandenberghe had posted that with the U.S. stepping back from climate action, the EU’s strong green laws “may turn out to be a great asset to attract investment.”