William F. Buckley: The Good and the Bad

Conservative icon William F. Buckley passed away this morning. My sympathies to his family and friends. One of the reasons for the conservative dominance in recent decades is because of huge players like Buckley who knew how to organize a unified movement... liberalism has never had a comparative counterpart. It is noteworthy that his passing comes as that movement is imploding.

Still, while I mourn his loss as a human being, I can't pretend to have shared his politics. While modern conservatism has been marketed on the myths of Reaganism and liberty and American flag pins, its roots are far less glowing. For instance, Buckley is famous for founding the National Review (one of my fave punching bags), a publication which spent its early years defending totalitarian leaders at home (Joseph McCarthy) and abroad (Francisco Franco, others). It also made clear that it planned to stand on the wrong side of history-

The first issue, which came out in November, claimed the publication “stands athwart history yelling Stop.”

It proved it by lining up squarely behind Southern segregationists, saying blacks should be denied the vote. After some conservatives objected, Mr. Buckley suggested instead that both uneducated whites and blacks should not be allowed to vote.

This aspect of post-WWII conservatism should never be forgotten. The right's vehement opposition to the civil rights movement is what ultimately increased the number of Republicans, as racist Democrats-- particularly in the South-- left their party in droves from the 1950s through the 1970s.

In his obituary post, Salon's Alex Koppelman brings up another good point-

Buckley's biggest achievement was revitalizing conservatism at a time when it had been marginalized in the United States for decades, since conservatives had opposed Roosevelt's New Deal and advocated isolationism before the U.S. entry into WWII.

Yes, conservatives were marginalized after the war for being on the wrong side of the New Deal and other issues. It should be kept in mind that many conservatives today-- at least the ones in the media spotlight-- are just as opposed now. That was how the post-war conservative revival got started (all the way through Reagan)... by telling conservatives that they didn't have to be New Deal appeasers like that pussy Eisenhower and that they could fight back. The battle over the New Deal legacy still largely defines both parties today.

Still, I credit Mr. Buckley for having the capacity to grow and change. In the post-Goldwater, pre-Reagan years, Buckley renounced his opposition to civil rights, and stood up to the Birch Society and other right-wing nutcases. He was a constantly evolving figure.

In recent years-- despite the piles of praise they're throwing on him now-- Buckley even dissented from his party on one of the biggest issues of the day... the Iraq war. And the right was unforgiving-

"Aren't you embarrassed by the absence of these weapons?" Buckley snaps at Podhoretz. He has just explained that he supported the war reluctantly, because Dick Cheney convinced him that Saddam Hussein had WMD primed to be fired. "No," Podhoretz replies. "As I say, they were shipped to Syria. During Gulf War One, the entire Iraqi air force was hidden in the deserts in Iran." He says he is "heartbroken" by this "rise of defeatism on the right." He adds, apropos of nothing, "There was nobody better than Don Rumsfeld. This defeatist talk only contributes to the impression we are losing, when I think we are winning."

The audience cheers Podhoretz. The nuanced doubts of Bill Buckley leave them confused. Doesn't he sound like the liberal media? Later, over dinner, a tablemate from Denver calls Buckley "a coward." His wife nods and says, "Buckley's an old man," tapping her head with her finger to suggest dementia.

Ohh, conservatism... look at you now, baby!

So, in the end, even William F. Buckley himself was ashamed of what his movement had become. After all, you didn't seem him making appearances on Hannity & Colmes often, did you? Rest in piece, Mr. Buckley, and good luck to us all.