July 5, 2000

Sideshow Pat
By Tom Bevan

Not so long ago Pat Buchanan was a respected conservative thinker and commentator. Surely one of the sharper political and historical minds of recent memory, Buchanan drew large audiences who were captivated by his "tell it like it is" style and the way he forcefully argued his conservative ideology. Unfortunately, this year marks the official transformation of Pat Buchanan from a leader in the conservative movement to a money grubbing, party hi-jacking, publicity hound.

Buchanan's metamorphosis began in the New Hampshire Republican primary in 1996 where the notoriously independent-minded voters of the Granite State legitimized his isolationist trade views. Sensing that he had stuck a chord with the American people, Buchanan went on to focus his campaign around a populist anti-free trade platform.

While Buchanan has long argued for preserving American sovereignty and curbing participation in such groups as the WTO and the UN, it was his stance on free trade that ultimately led him to bolt the Republican Party this year. In the greatest of ironies, however, Buchanan has now adopted a position on free trade that is identical to ultra liberal Democrats like Richard Gephardt and David Bonior. And Buchanan's other core issue - a Constitutional amendment outlawing abortion - puts him at odds with these same liberals and out of touch with a portion of the Republican electorate as well. Such conflicting views left Buchanan isolated in the political system.

Enter the Reform party and its $12.5 million in federal matching funds for this year's election. Buchanan, who prides himself as a man of principle, chose to join the newly formed third party whose platform is explicitly silent on social issues such as abortion. And, with the party already in disarray, Buchanan and his followers have used the loosely formulated rules for selecting delegates to bulldoze their way to the nomination.

Even more disturbing than Buchanan's money grab is his newly found willingness to embrace people like Marxist Lenora Fulani to generate headlines. This stunt, which unraveled last month with Fulani quitting the campaign, demonstrates how pliable Pat's principles have become when it comes to publicity.

Judging by the polls, voters seem to confirm Buchanan's devolution from a somewhat formidable political force to a mere traveling sideshow. Buchanan has not gotten above 10% in any national poll taken this year and consistently lags behind Ralph Nader of the Green Party. Furthermore, Buchanan draws his limited support equally from both Bush and Gore - still more evidence of the paradoxical nature of his views.

To be sure, Pat Buchanan will continue to travel around the country and whip his supporters into a frenzy with first class rhetoric. Just this past holiday weekend, Pat wowed the crowd with this call for tougher trade restrictions on China: "I would say to them ... if you don't stop persecuting people ... I think you fellows have sold your last pair of chopsticks at any mall in this country." Unfortunately, with each new proclamation Buchanan will be remembered more for the caricature he has become rather than for the smart conservative ideologue he once was.

Tom Bevan writes for RealClearPolitics