EU Eavesdropping Treading on Trade Treaty?

Looks like our friends are getting a little excited overseas:

European officials, angered over the new revelations, said the program could threaten ongoing negotiations on a trans-Atlantic trade treaty.

“Partners do not spy on each other,” said EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding. “We cannot negotiate over a big trans-Atlantic market if there is the slightest doubt that our partners are carrying out spying activities on the offices of our negotiators. The American authorities should eliminate any such doubt swiftly.”

Actually, partners spy on each other all the time. It’s called “keeping an eye on things.” It’s also called “business as usual.” To a degree, of course — we do things to get intelligence in North Korea or Iran or even China that we’d never try with our European friends.

The worst thing likely to happen is the trade treaty talks go on hold for a few days, until everybody has had a chance to express the appropriate amount of mock outrage.

Unless of course the Administration has been exceeding those unwritten “business as usual” rules, in which case there’s no telling how bad the fallout could get.