An 'Authentic' Conservative, Buchanan Parts With Bush

INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY ^ | Wednesday, August 28, 2002 | BY BRIAN MITCHELL

[sixmil]

I still don't understand Buchanan's sympathy toward the Palestinians, but the rest is right on target.

[Under the Radar]

Isn't it possible to recognize that Israel's interests are not necessarily our interests, without being "pro-Palestine"?

[finnman69]

Why do I suspect that Buchanan's mag will go the way of Salon and Donahue's new show.

Pat, how about "The American Sore Loser" as a working title. You can get Gore and McKinney as contributing columnists.

[hchutch]

Buchanan's become the bitter old gadfly who pines for an era that never really was, and can never come to pass.

Furthermore, the fact remains that Reagan and Bush Jr.'s brand of conservatism is the type that can eventually make this nation stronger. Our nation and culture have survived worse trials in the past, and I believe we can survive the current tests.

It's really a battle between optimism and pessimism, and optimism is a far better path, IMHO.

[dwilli]

His leaving will bring many more people into
the party than will leave with him. You can't
put lipstick on pigs and expect them to not
still get muddy. Pat Buchanan is as racist today
as he was twenty years ago, he's just learned
to conceal it better.

[Burkeman1]

I have concelled NR after being a subscriber since I was 16. I will try Buchanan's mag.

[SunStar]

Buchanan: I regret that for the rest of Mr. Bush's first term, we're going to be at war. The president has subcontracted out our Middle East policy to Ariel Sharon, and I think that's a dreadful mistake.

Buchanan is a 1920's conservative, anti-Semitism and all.

[PuNcH]

It's really a battle between optimism and pessimism, and optimism is a far better path, IMHO.

DPS intelligence reports said Mexico-based rings were responsible for half of all homicides in Maricopa County. These are the kind of problems that Buchanan acknowledges and Bushbot's ignore. Ignoring problems and acting like they dont exist is not optimism.

So you brand Buchanan pessimistic and Bush optimistic. How lovely. You know the rest of the liberals simply brand themselves politically correct. They got it all covered in advance.

[ex-snook]

"Buchanan's become the bitter old gadfly who pines for an era that never really was, and can never come to pass. "

Let's see why Buchanan pines.

- Pat was right on the economy bubble while Bush/Clinton were on spending frenzy plus tax cuts for as far as the eye could see.
- Pat was right about illegal immigration problems.
- Pat was right that foreign entanglements would bring war to our shores.
- Pat was s right that gay sexual practices will cause problems. Check out aids and what happened to the Catholic Church.

No wonder he is pining - so should America.

[BlueNgold]

My two cents:

Pat Buchanen has never been anything other than a self-styled arch-conservative. Just because he says he is the epitome of conservatism does not make it true.

I, for one, put Mr. Buchanen's comments on the same level as any talking head who has never felt that burden of actual responsibility. He might be a fine professor of conservative thinking, but he has very little grasp of the realities of day to day command and decision making. It is not wrong to dream of a conservative Utopia, or to even espouse such a dream, but leaders deal with actual situations containing actual problems.

If Pat wants to put forth potential solutions and forward thinking ideas to better our country I might listen, but it seems that his greatest commodity is the ability to find fault in everyone else but himself. As for me - I'm not buying.

[hchutch]

Sorry, again, I don't buy it.

I don't know why Buchanan has his head in the sand vis-a-vis foreign policy. Saddam Hussein is a MALIGNANT CANCER who has to be taken down sooner, rather than later. The same deal was the case with the Soviet Union, Nazi Germany, and I could probably think of a few more places where we need to take a stand now.

A fair bit of our policy since World War II was not playing favorites, it was stopping things before they got to World War III, or it was standing up for what was RIGHT. Pat Buchanan's way is no better than "non-judgemental" liberalism applied to international affairs.

[Eternal_Bear]

We didn't attack the Soviet union. We allied with them though Stalin murdered millions more in his concentration camps than Hitler did! Two nations attacked Poland in September 1939 but the West declared war only on one of them. America was still doing business with Hitler as London was being carpet bombed. Chamberlain had the guts to declare war on germany. We waited till Germany declared war on us.

[rogerthedodger]

Wow. You, disagree with a man's ideas, so you label him a racist/anti-semite? Sounds like something the Left does really well. If I were to suggest that American foreign policy is being manipulated by the Saudi royal family or the Palestinian Authority, does that mean that I am anti-Arab?

[hchutch]

Of course, you just highlighted another reason why Buchanan is an irrelevant side-show: His slash-and-burn style, is, in my opinion, just as bad as the fact that he has been completely wrong on foreign policy, and if you want my opinion, stuck in the 1920s.

[hchutch]

We didn't attack them, we contained `em for 32 years, and then Reagan pretty much initiated something that was "short of war" with the USSR through attacks on their economy (remember how the Saudis really kicked up production in the 1980s?), and subverting their governments.

[Zviadist]

Buchanan's become the bitter old gadfly who pines for an era that never really was, and can never come to pass.

Bitter? Have you ever watched his show on MSNBC? The guy is constantly laughing and joking, often at his own expense. Say what you will about his policy views, but he is anything but bitter.

[hchutch]

I don't see him on MSNBC. I do read his columns, and there seems to be a sense of bitterness about him.

[PuNcH]

Of course, you just highlighted another reason why Buchanan is an irrelevant side-show: His slash-and-burn style,

I said that Buchanan acknowledges the problems coming across the border and that highlights a slash and burn style? I guess you believe we shouldnt be paying attention to all those murders committed by illegal immigrants and their gangs.

[That Subliminal Kid]

I don't know, why DO you suspect that?

[That Subliminal Kid]

What a bunch of garbage. He's a nationalist, he's a jingoist, but he's no racist. If you've read any of his books you'd know that. I think he's a brilliant man whose ideas are far too correct, and far to radical for our spineless sissified country.