program. While they are understandably not the primary focus of d’Ambruoso’s research, comments such as the following: “European records of abuses, though not spotless, has improved in postcolonial times” (p. 20) diminish with- out further consideration the Western allies’ role in aiding and abetting the use of torture in US intelligence operations, particularly in the CIA Detention and Interrogation Pro- gram. More importantly, such comments mislead readers concerning the continued relevance of such research, as well as of the severity of states’ persistent use of more indirect forms of torture. Additionally, the book’s theoretical built-up warrants multiple minor criticisms. Specifically, the book’s nod to Feminist Theory is unfortunately distracting, as the theory is only briefly mentioned (pp. 39–40, 68), and therefore fails to make any notable contributions to the empirical analysis. Whereas a more active consideration, for exam- ple, of the rationales of female politicians, the conduct of female interrogators or of the treatment of female suspects might have offered interesting insights, the brief mention- ing of the theory leaves the reader only wishing for more. In contrast, by not including any consideration of the extraterritoriality of torture or any discussion on the potentially contradictory nature of the “cheaters win” rationale and states’ efforts to downplay torture allega- tions, the author misses a key opportunity to streamline his theory and clarify potential contradictions. The fact that the extraterritorial application of human rights remains a debate even among academics only underscores the blur- riness of international law and states’ obligations, which is particularly relevant given that the primary victims of US torture in all three of the case studies were foreigners abroad. Lastly, by omitting a discussion on policy makers’ efforts to utilize blurriness in international law to downplay or to reinterpret the definition of torture, the book avoids addres- sing whether such actions could reduce the potency of the “cheaters win logic,” which particularly builds on the pre- mise of being perceived as tough and “playing dirty” (p. 35). In sum, d’Ambruoso’s book offers an empirically rich historic account of the US use of torture, while emphasiz- ing the state leaders’“tough equals efficient” rationale and the antitorture norm’s lacking specificity. In doing so, the author provides a valuable contribution to an already well- established academic debate, and yet leaves room for further elaboration on his findings. Political Leadership and the European Commission Presidency. By Henriette Müller. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2020. 352p. $110.00 cloth. doi:10.1017/S1537592722003565 — Buket Oztas , Furman University buket.oztas@furman.edu There has been an ongoing debate in the literature about the extent to which the European Commission is a political actor, sets the European political agenda, medi- ates intra- and interinstitutional conflicts, and represents the interests of the European community. The lack of a clear hierarchy among the European Union’s core institu- tions, along with its complex, fragmented, and pluralistic leadership structure, further complicates the picture, resulting in intense debate about the distribution of power within the union. Henriette Müller approaches this conversation from the “actor-centered perspective of political leadership” (p. 24). By examining the power and influence of Commission presidents, she sheds light on their oft-cited but little understood role. As “the only position that participates in all four arenas of European decision-making” (p. 15), the Commission president speaks for Europe and fulfills important political functions, from agenda setting and consensus building to policy management and implemen- tation. Constrained, however, by weak institutional powers and an unstable situational context, Commission presidents must often rely on their own personal skills and connec- tions to provide meaningful political leadership. Because the existing literature has paid relatively little attention to this anomaly, Müller investigates the reasons Commission presidents differ so significantly in their ability to tackle the inherent limitations of their position and fulfill their three core responsibilities: policy formation (agenda- setting leadership), policy implementation (mediative- institutional leadership), and policy (re)presentation (public leadership). Müller’s analysis centers on the factors that make political leadership in supranational governance suc- cessful and explains why some Commission presidents act as “true president[s] of Europe,” while others fail to over- come the challenges and complexities of the office. In the first two chapters of her book, Müller presents the theoretical background of the study by introducing the four patterns of political leadership performance (strong- entrepreneurial, moderately strong-executive, moderately weak-reactive, and weak-passive/nonleadership) and the interactionist approach that highlights the “relationship between individual actors and the institutional and situa- tional context they are embedded in” (p. 19). The next three chapters meticulously evaluate the leadership performance of three Commission presidents whom she selected for their “empirical compatibility, representativeness, and variance with regards to … personal (pre-)dispositions” (p. 10): Walter Hallstein (1958–67), Jacques Delors (1985–95), and José Manuel Barroso (2004–14). Applying the most similar systems design, Müller engages in a systematic comparison of their political agendas as well as their medi- ation, reconciliation, and public outreach efforts. Analyzing more than a thousand presidential speeches, countless internal and formal Commission documents, newspaper articles, and interviews of civil servants, she concludes that in supranational governance, institutional structure, and situational setting are less important than (1) the type of March 2023 | Vol. 21/No. 1 409 https://doi.org/10.1017/S1537592722003565 Published online by Cambridge University Press