I remember when he ran the first time, a National Review cover asked the question “Is Pat Buchanon Anti-Semitic? With limited evidence, based mostly on his positions, they concluded he was. I wondered why they never did the same analysis on James Carter. There certainly was more evidence. That was one of my early recognition of the uni-party nature of National Review.
Buckley was still alive then. He supported Buchanan as a ‘protest’.
I like Buckley a lot but National Review was always the “gatekeepers” over what is allowed for conservative thought.
They tried it again with Trump but failed since it’s not the magazine it once was.
I remember a profile article about Bill Buckley’s wife Pat mentioning her driving a Lincoln (?) with a Pat Buchanan for President bumper sticker. So, at least *some* in the NR orbit appreciated the man.
In any case, I’ll miss Buchanan’s column. The man was usually right. None of us are perfect, and no one will agree with 100% of what someone else writes or thinks over a 50+ year-long career. But, in my opinion, Pat Buchanan nailed the big issues, was an independent thinker not a party hack and definitely got a lot more right than wrong.
That was about the time I dropped my National Review subscription. As Bill Buckley and his influence on NR declined, it turned in directions I could not agree with.
I wish it was anti-Trump NR that was retiring permanently. To hell with that screed.