Posted on 12/28/2018 2:25:56 PM PST by Kaslin
WASHINGTON - Writing a weekly, nationally syndicated newspaper and online column assumes that my readers understand how I arrive at the political positions I take on the issues of the day.
And most of the time they do. But now and then, here and there, some of my readers have wrongly assumed I must be a liberal, left wing Democrat, if I criticize positions or actions taken by President Trump or his administration.
That view especially comes through loud and clear in their online comments. And, yes, I read all your comments, critical or praiseworthy, and thanks for taking the time to let me know what you think of each column.
But over the years, it occurs to me that some readers really know very little about my long political background and what has shaped the views and positions I take in my column. In other words, “Who is this guy?
So I thought it would be helpful to lay out a biographical sketch of my professional background to let readers know who or what has shaped my political views over these many decades.
From my earliest years I have always wanted to be a journalist, reporting the news from Washington, Congress, the White House, presidential campaigns, and eventually on television and in books.
As a journalism student at Boston University, I was active in politics, founding a Young Americans for Freedom chapter, the national conservative youth organization that got its start in Sharon, Conn. at the home of conservative crusader William F. Buckley, Jr. He spoke at one of our first gatherings on campus in a packed auditorium.
I began a weekly, half hour program on the university’s WBUR radio station where I defended the conservative position against liberal campus leaders. The dean of our college was the moderator. The Boston Globe promoted that show on its radio listings.
Upon graduation, I went to work for YAF in Washington as managing editor of its magazine, The New Guard. And later worked in Barry Goldwater’s presidential campaign.
It wasn’t long before I got back into journalism, working for United Press International, covering Congress and a long line of presidential candidates — from Gerald Ford to Ronald Reagan, and both Presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush.
I had already gotten to know Reagan pretty well before then, when he was governor of California, and whenever he came to Washington for a speech we got together at the Madison Hotel for a lengthy interview.
Before and during that time, I was writing a series of investigative stories uncovering wasteful federal spending practices throughout the government that UPI nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.
That led to several books about waste in Washington, including “Fat City: How Washington Wastes Your Taxes” that showed where billions of dollars could be cut from the federal budget. A PBS television documentary — “Star Spangled Spenders” — based on that book, which I hosted, soon followed, with glowing reviews.
Reagan frequently quoted from my book throughout his 1980 campaign, and passed out copies to every member of his Cabinet at their first White House meeting in 1981, urging them to read it and root out wasteful spending.
I began a weekly, half hour program on the university’s WBUR radio station where I defended the conservative position against liberal campus leaders. The dean of our college was the moderator. The Boston Globe promoted that show on its radio listings.
Upon graduation, I went to work for YAF in Washington as managing editor of its magazine, The New Guard. And later worked in Barry Goldwater’s presidential campaign.
It wasn’t long before I got back into journalism, working for United Press International, covering Congress and a long line of presidential candidates — from Gerald Ford to Ronald Reagan, and both Presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush.
I had already gotten to know Reagan pretty well before then, when he was governor of California, and whenever he came to Washington for a speech we got together at the Madison Hotel for a lengthy interview.
Before and during that time, I was writing a series of investigative stories uncovering wasteful federal spending practices throughout the government that UPI nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.
That led to several books about waste in Washington, including “Fat City: How Washington Wastes Your Taxes” that showed where billions of dollars could be cut from the federal budget. A PBS television documentary — “Star Spangled Spenders” — based on that book, which I hosted, soon followed, with glowing reviews.
Reagan frequently quoted from my book throughout his 1980 campaign, and passed out copies to every member of his Cabinet at their first White House meeting in 1981, urging them to read it and root out wasteful spending.
Donald Lambro was one of the Good Guys back during the impeachment wars.
He calls The Wall “wasteful” (https://townhall.com/columnists/donaldlambro/2018/12/14/president-trumps-imaginary-wall-n2537450) - RINO scumbag.
Say, maybe he could find out how Cortez got so smart.
Yeah, and we all know full well that the govt NEVER wastes ANY money, right?
Thanks for that information, puts a different light on this guy. Not favorable.
Missing any time in uniform in that personal history.
Not really a conservative, if he didn’t put his life on the line at some point.
Who Is This Guy Who Writes This Column? Another Lefty desperately trying to increase his readership by adopting a different pose with his ‘prose’ ...
“Not really a conservative, if he didn’t put his life on the line at some point.”
That is utter nonsense.
.
That's because you can't get any pudding if you don't eat your meat!
To you, certainly. To those of us who have risked our lives for our country, it is fundamental truth.
You either invest all you have or you’re not part of the game.
Lambro was my least favorite writer for Conservative Chronicles back in the 1990’s. I always thought he was somewhat to the left.
Pat Buchanan and Samuel Francis made up for it anyway.
What about those who were drafted in peacetime?
Have they got skin in the game?
.
If they served, they served. They took the risks for our country, didn’t they?
What about those who couldn’t?
I broke an ankle in High School. The military wouldn’t take me no way, no how, no time.
Does that make me not a conservative?
I knew that I was going to paint myself into a corner!
You and my younger brother - who was badly injured in a motorcycle accident - wanted to serve and couldn’t.
I gotta quit with the “bitter veteran” crap.
I feel like I read that twice.
I feel like I read that twice.
Are they authoritative over you?
Probably only the gay contingent.
What does “authoritive even over me” mean?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.