The article challenges the idea that national publics effectively control EU decision-making. Factors like parliament, parties, interest groups, and the media face obstacles in shaping public opinion on EU issues. The study looks at how the Dutch public views EU matters like the Constitutional Treaty, Turkey's accession talks, and the Services Directive. It finds that public opinion on EU topics in the Netherlands is often uncertain, disorganized, and hard to predict, resembling mass opinion more than a well-informed public opinion.