Along with the usual files and spreadsheets, the European Union leaders traveling to Brussels this week to thrash out the bloc’s long-term budget are being advised to bring an extra change of clothes. Maybe two. The extraordinary summit to nail down a seven-year spending plan is scheduled to start on Thursday. But no end time has been set and diplomats fear negotiations could drag on through the weekend. Even then failure remains the likeliest outcome. The trillion-euro budget is a cornerstone of EU policy that lets farmers compete against imports from the developing world, helps poorer states catch up with the rich ... (full story)