Draghi has form in persuading the Governing Council, which includes the governors of the euro-area’s 19 national central banks, to take decisions contrary to the institution’s planned course of action.

At his first meeting as president in November 2011, when the ECB’s economic staff advised no change in the interest rate, he surprised them and some of the Governing Council turning the debate in favor of a quarter-point cut.

In July 2012, as surging sovereign debt yields strained the euro area’s stability, he said at a conference in London that he would do “whatever it takes” to save the single currency. The comments, which hadn’t been endorsed by the Governing Council, sparked six weeks of hurried negotiations before the announcement of an emergency bond-purchase program.

David Fuller's view

Is Mario Draghi the most powerful man in the European Union today?  Not according to the EU’s hierarchical structure.  In fact, he could even be sacked, heaven forefend, although that would appear to be the remotest of possibilities.  The ECB President has certainly had his battles in recent years, not least over the introduction of QE, which he fortunately won.  Today, he is certainly the most respected man in Europe and deservedly so.

In fact, Draghi is rated number 2, behind Tim Cook, in Fortune Magazine’s currently tally of the World’s Greatest Leaders. 

Here is what they said about him:

Mario Draghi, as president of the European Central Bank, surely has one of the toughest and most significant jobs in the world. Growth and stability in the eurozone, and more broadly in the European Union, should be an anchor for the world economy. But its weaker economies have floundered for years, and Europe has long lacked the political leadership to address their problems. Draghi, drawing on long experience in both government and business, has moved to fill that void. Taking full advantage of the instruments available to the central bank and his personal powers of persuasion, he has carried out his own pledge to do “whatever it takes” to hold the eurozone together.
Draghi’s role requires him to balance widely divergent national views and circumstances. Ultimate success is dependent upon confidence in the skill, capacity, and integrity of a man able to reconcile the different positions. Draghi, born of Italy but a man of Europe, has provided that leadership.
Victory in the battle for growth and stability—and political reconciliation—within Europe has not yet arrived. However, there is little doubt that Draghi has provided a beacon of needed leadership. Given the weight of Europe in the world economy, we all have a stake in his work.

Who said that – some sycophant?

No, it was written by Paul Volcker, a towering figure in every respect.