Pat Buchanan

thumb|right|168px|Pat Buchanan, 2008.
Patrick Joseph Buchanan is a fascistBuchanan Explained by Charles Krauthammer (March 1, 1992) The Washington Post. and paleoconservative "reformer" who ran for the Republican nomination for president of the United States a few times, foreshadowing the hard-right bent the party was about to take. He began his career in politics ratfucking for (who else?) Tricky Dick,Ratfuckers, Crybabies, and Schoolmarms: The Dave Weigel Affair by Tom Scocca (June 27, 20107:58 PM) Slate. and went on to work for Ford and Ronnie as an advisor.
He then built himself up as something of a pundit on the newly-minted venue of cable news, becoming the first man to be seen on national television seven days a week.A Global Pro-Democracy Movement Beginning with the television show Buchanan-Braden in 1982, he became a rotating talking head for CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News. He seemed reasonable but kooky until February 2012, when his employers got fed up with his racism and gave him the boot, kicking him off of the Morning Joe Show (though he remains friends with his co-workers).Pat Buchanan booted from MSNBC four months after being suspended over controversial book by Aliyah Shahid (February 17, 2012, 11:22 AM) New York Daily News (archived from February 17, 2012).
==Political career==
The first time he ran for president in 1992, he challenged George H. W. Bush for the Republican party nomination, and after he failed, he gave a speech at the convention that hit every single culture war target. In fact, he was the one of the first to use the phrase "culture war" in that very speech. Many have suggested that the speech he gave so frightened moderate Republicans that they swung to either Perot or Clinton. He was essentially a Trump Republican before it was popular. (Although Molly Ivins did admit "it probably sounded better in the original German."A wild ride on the left)
In his second run for the Republican nomination in 1996, he managed to eke out a victory in the New Hampshire primary along with three other early contests. This gave the Republican establishment a brief scare but Bob Dole easily steamrolled him in "Super Tuesday." 
His third run was on Ross Perot's Reform Party ticket in 2000. There was much controversy over his run, as many said he essentially took over the party in a coup, lured by the prospect of $12 million in federal matching funds, then left the party in a shambles. He did very poorly, though the design of the "butterfly ballot" ended up giving him quite a lot of votes in certain liberal, predominantly Jewish precincts in Florida. He was willing to acknowledge that those votes were not likely for him, especially given that he is seen as very antisemitic by Jewish advocacy groups,Patrick Buchanan: Unrepentant Bigot (February 27, 2012) Anti-Defamation League (archived from October 30, 2012).Who's afraid of Pat Buchanan? by Jake Tapper (September 4, 1999 4:00PM EDT) Salon. and even by fellow conservatives (e.g., William F. Buckley).The Enmity Within by Nathan Glazer (September 27, 1992) The New York Times. That and the fact that he rants about the "Israel lobby" every chance he gets.Pat Buchanan: Hitler apologist by David Gorski (oracknows) (September 3, 2009) Science Blogs.On Pat Buchanan’s Holocaust denial by Josh Rosenau (tfk) (April 22, 2009) Science Blogs.
==Views==
What does Pat Buchanan stand for? Well, most famously, his opposition to free trade (which FAIR speculated was the main motivating factor for the mainstream media's opposition to Buchanan during his 1996 Presidential CampaignIt’s the Mexicans, Stupid) and immigration, both legal and illegal. This has given him some VERY unlikely bedfellows, such as when future Socialist Party USA candidate Brian Moore endorsed him in 2000. However, other free trade critics have not been as open to Buchanan, with many noting that his criticism of free trade appears to be more because of his desire to appear as a populist than because he actually cares about the issue. In his book Downsize This: Random Threats from an Unarmed American,Moore, Michael (1996). Downsize This! Random Threats from an Unarmed American. New York: HarperPerennial. ISBN 0-06-097733-7. Michael Moore writes the following about Buchanan's opinion on free trade:
===Anti-war?===
He is, along with Ron Paul, Ralph Nader, Noam Chomsky, Ramsey Clark, and a handful of other people, among the only categorical anti-war voices since the end of the Cold War. (As opposed to people like Howard Dean who was only against the second Iraq War but supported the first, John Kerry who was against the first and for the second, and Pat Robertson who was only against the NATO bombing of Serbia but supported bombing everyone else.) Of course, this is because Buchanan describes himself as neo-isolationist. By this, he does not mean that the US should not involve itself in other people's disputes; rather, he seems to believe that the US government should have no foreign policy, period. That means no UN, no NATO, no NORAD, etc. To a layperson, he could easily be considered an "economic nationalist" — but his isolationism and hatred of anyone who isn't a heterosexual WASP make it more likely he is just xenophobic. Buchanan's rationale, of course, is that American lives are much too precious to be wasted on pagan filth.
His support for anti-war activism put together with his presence in the media was the bane of many anti-war activists, who thought he was only being propped up in hopes of smearing all critics of United States foreign policy as similar to him.Media on the March
Buchanan's support for past imperialism before switching to isolationism led many to question his anti-war credentials. Christopher Hitchens, while reviewing his 1999 book A Republic, Not An Empire,Buchanan, Patrick J. (1999), A Republic, Not an Empire: Reclaiming America's Destiny, ISBN 0-89526-272-X. noted the following:
===Springtime for Putin===
Following the Russian annexation of Crimea, Buchanan declared that God was on Russia's side and "the West is Gomorrah."Vladimir Putin, Christian Crusader? by Patrick Buchanan (April 4, 2014|12:00 am) The American Conservative.Is Putin One of Us?
 He also spoke in favor of Putin's anti-Gay law, calling on Americans to implement similar bulwarks against "gay propaganda".
===Torture===
Despite being against the "War on Terror", he has supported the use of torture on potentially innocent people suspected of terrorism.The case for torture by Patrick J. Buchanan (March 10, 2003; 1:00 a.m. Eastern) WND (archived from August 26, 2004).
===Holocaust diminution===
Buchanan has enjoyed a long psychic and sexual relationship with Adolf Hitler,"All Donald Trump should worry about is being the president" by Shifflet (January 30, 2000) The Free-Lance Star. Pages E1, E3. whom Buchanan called:
 
He crystallized his views in his 2008 book Churchill, Hitler, and the Unnecessary War, wherein he basically takes a pro-German view of World Wars I and II, says that the US shouldn't have gotten involved in WWII, that Churchill helped provoke Japan to attack Pearl Harbor, and that Hitler could have been contained. Naturally, historians,The Bad War? by Victor Davis Hanson] (Jun 05, 2008 12:01 AM) Townhall.Necessary Evil book review of Buchanan's book Churchill, Hitler, and the Unnecessary War: How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the World by John Lukacs (June 2, 2008) The American Conservative (archived from November 21, 2008). punditsWW2, a War Worth Fighting by Christopher Hitchens (6/14/08 at 11:36 AM EDT) Newsweek. and non-Nazis generallyChurchill and His Myths by Geoffrey Wheatcroft (May 29, 2008) The New York Review. took strong exception. 
Unsurprisingly, it had some fans on the far right.Was the 'Good War' Unnecessary? by Anthony Gregory (June 27, 2009) LewRockwell.com (archived from June 29, 2009).
Buchanan has long flirted with downright Holocaust denialism, writing in 1990 that "Diesel engines do not emit enough carbon monoxide to kill anybody"."Ivan the Terrible" - More Doubts This is wrong, as diesel fumes do emit enough carbon monoxide to kill people in high enough concentrations.Diesel fumes do kill: a case of fatal carbon monoxide poisoning directly attributed to diesel fuel exhaust with a 10-year retrospective case and literature review* When George Will asked Buchanan to defend this statement on live television, Buchanan never replied.Is Pat Buchanan Anti-Semitic? He did later defend the claim by saying, regarding how he came to this conclusion, “Somebody sent it to me.”In His Own Words ("Much of the material on which Buchanan bases his columns is sent to him by pro-Nazi, anti-Semitic cranks," wrote Jacob Weisberg in The New Republic.The Heresies of Pat Buchanan)
While serving as Communications Director for Ronald Reagan, Buchanan asked the President to visit the cemetery in Bitburg, Germany, where Nazi SS troops are buried, even being behind a line where Reagan said Nazi war criminals were “victims just as surely as the victims in the concentration camps.”
===Creationism===
A Traditionalist Catholic, Buchanan is an evolution denialist, to the surprise of nobody.What are the Darwinists afraid of? by Patrick J. Buchanan (August 08, 2005) The American Cause.
===Racism===
Buchanan has gotten into much controversy over the years for his views on race, specifically those on black people. Back when Buchanan was an aide to Richard Nixon (who found Buchanan abnormally extreme on race issuesWhat would Pat Buchanan have to say to get himself fired from MSNBC?), he would write about how Nixon should be careful not to offend those who thought Martin Luther King Jr. "was a fraud and a demagogue and perhaps worse."Pat Buchanan in His Own Words These views were not softened as Buchanan got older, as seen in a 2008 column discussing the Jeremiah Wright controversy where he wrote:
Buchanan has also looked back fondly on the segregation of his childhood, writing in his autobiography:
During the Civil Rights Movement, Buchanan would publish FBI smears against Civil Rights leaders in his columns.
As a Nixon aide, Buchanan supported the nomination of Harrold Carswell, a self-described white supremacist, to the Supreme Court and believes that he was only not confirmed by the Senate because he was "smeared".
When segregation ended, he said those who were in favor of it continuing had "a legitimate grievance".Defending segregation has been a staple of Buchanan's political career wherever he can find it, with him defending Bob Jones University's infamous policy against interracial dating in 1989. That same year, he wrote on David Duke “Take a hard look at Duke’s portfolio of winning issues and expropriate those not in conflict with GOP principles, [such as] reverse discrimination against white folks.”
Buchanan has also defended apartheid South Africa, and in the process criticized those who believe “white rule of a black majority is inherently wrong," because "The Founding Fathers did not believe this." This culminated in actual White House policy when Buchanan, as an advisor to the president, supported Reagan's veto of the even as there was internal debate within the administration. The veto was ultimately overridden by Congress.(October 3, 1986). "White House blunders led to defeat". The Washington Post, syndicated to The Courier (Prescott, Arizona).
Buchanan's memos to Nixon were often racially charged, with one of them using the n-word to describe conservatives who he felt that President Nixon was not acting loyal to.
===Anti-immigration===
Quite possibly the thing Buchanan is most infamous for is his stance against immigration. Back in 1991, Buchanan infamously said:
This is not the only time Buchanan has expressed his opposition to immigration in regards to race. Writing in 1984, Buchanan said “The central objection to the present flood of illegals is that they are not English-speaking white people from Western Europe, they are Spanish-speaking brown and black people from Mexico, Latin America and the Caribbean.”
If the aftermath of the Virginia Tech shooting, Buchanan wrote a column blaming it — and by extension the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and the 9/11 terrorist attack — on increased amount of immigration into the country.The dark side of diversity
===Homophobia===
Buchanan wears his homophobia as a badge of honor, writing that “A visceral recoil from homosexuality is the natural reaction of a healthy society wishing to preserve itself,” and “A prejudice against males who engage in sodomy with one another represents a normal and healthy bias in favor of sound morality.” Although this did not stop him from defending Senator Larry Craig when he was caught engaging in sexual actions with another man in a public restroomFriends of Larry Craig and criticized John Kerry for bringing up Dick Cheney's lesbian daughter (using "the cold, hard word" as he put it on MSNBCBuchanan: Kerry's use of “cold, hard word 'lesbian'” like “saying ... 'my friend's daughter had an abortion'”
) during a 2004 Presidential Debate in order to make a point about George W. Bush's homophobia.With Respect to Mary Cheney (It seems Buchanan softens his homophobia whenever the homosexual in question is a Republican, although he still couldn't resist a little gay bashing by saying on his closeted buddies “To some of us, homosexuality is an affliction, like alcoholism, and hellishly difficult to control.”Pat Buchanan: "Homosexuality is an affliction, like alcoholism")
Buchanan's stance on homosexuality was best seen during his various writings from the AIDS epidemic. In one 1983 column, he wrote:
Buchanan later referred to this statement as a "throwaway line",Pat Buchanan on Civil Rights but that does not mean he doesn't stand by it. In fact, he even defended the statement in 2006, while defending his fellow homophobe Robert J. Smith.Is Catholicism now 'unacceptable'?
Buchanan's hatred of gay rights was satirized in the 1992 video game GayBlade, where the player is asked to defeat several homophobic people as enemies, with Buchanan serving as the final boss.GayBlade
===Democracy===
Buchanan is not a fan of democracy, once saying in defense of the government of Iran "I put democracy far down the line. I think a devoutly Christian, conservative, traditionalist country—even if it’s a monarchy—is fine with me.”Save Pat Buchanan! He has also written that "quasi-dictatorial rule" could be the solution to the problems of the United States.Buchanan and Duke
===Antisemitism===
While arguing against the United States going to war in the Persian Gulf, Buchanan specifically felt the need to go after four advocates for the conflict: A.M. Rosenthal, Richard Perle, Charles Krauthammer, and Henry Kissinger, all four of whom are Jewish.
During a 1995 interview with Norman Lear (who is Jewish), Buchanan felt the need to twice tell him that Jesus Christ was “the greatest man who ever lived” and told him “You folks have control of the minds of children. And you are corrupting these children.”SoundBites
During his 1996 Presidential Campaign, Buchanan blamed Mossad for the death of Vince Foster, while also claiming both Foster and Hillary Clinton were spies for the Israeli intelligence agency.
When Obama nominated Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court in 2010, Buchanan complained that this would mean "Jews, who represent less than 2 percent of the U.S. population, will have 33 percent of the Supreme Court seats."Buchanan complains that with Kagan, Supreme Court will have too many Jews
==Second career==
He worked a stint at MSNBC, despite all of the racist, horrible things he has said publicly and the station's "liberal" slant (although it's likely that MSNBC kept him around for precisely this reason, in the hopes that he'd say something embarrassingly bigoted and make the right look bad. Two can play at that game!Pat Buchanan: "This has been a country built, basically, by white folks" From the July 16 edition of MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show (July 17, 2009 11:23 am ET) Media Matters for America (archived from July 18, 2009).Pat Buchanan: ‘Both sides were right’ in the Civil War by David Edwards and Daniel Tencer (April 9, 2010 11:30 EDT) Raw Story (archived from September 24, 2012).Pat Buchanan Appears on Political Cesspool, a White Supremacist Radio Show (June 30, 2008) Anti-Defamation League (archived from July 6, 2008).Pat Buchanan's Racist Rant by Isaiah J. Poole (March 24th, 2008 — 5:07pm ET) Campaign for America's Future (archived from September 19, 2008). Though they eventually fired him.)Narrowing of the American mind? by Mark Mardell (17 February 2012) BBC.
==Fake populism==
Throughout his political career, Buchanan has attempted to express populist sentiments on issues like free trade and immigration. However, many have pointed out that he has to have little desire for economic populist past the point where he can push an isolationist and nativist agenda. A 1998 article from Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting put it this way:
==Stopped clock==
Buchanan called out Sean Hannity on his show in an interview when they discussed dealing with Iran. Hannity repeatedly called for war, but Buchanan called him out and stated "we have to make peace even with our enemies" and also pointed out that the Iranian government and Hezbollah are fighting ISIS and Al Qaeda in Iraq and Syria. He also mentioned that Israel was rearming itself whilst Iran was not.Hannity in Heated Argument With Pat Buchanan Over Iran: "You Sound Like Obama!" Real Clear Politics, 2 April 2015.
Buchanan has also come out in support of medical marijuana.CLUB MEDICINE
During his 1996 Presidential Campaign, Buchanan wrote an actually pretty good criticism of the flat tax proposed by his fellow Republican candidate, Steve Forbes. In it, he correctly notes that a flat tax rate would not only disproportionally benefit the rich, but would also greatly increase the national deficit due to the decrease in revenue.A Flawed Flat Tax and the Way Out
Just after 9/11, Buchanan was one of the first columnists to call out George W. Bush for basing his foreign policy decision less on what would actually make sense to achieve his goals and more on wherever his already existing biases led him. Furthermore, he correctly acknowledges that much of the problems Americans had to deal with regarding terrorism are less due to the blind "they hate our freedoms" narrative pushed by Bush and more because of blowback from various engages in expansionism. (Albeit he also adds some fear mongering about illegal immigrants in the mix.)U.S. Pays the High Price of Empire
==In popular culture==
In the Mystery Science Theatre 3000 episode on the movie The Beast of Yucca Flats, the two villains do a bit called "Proposition Deep 13" which was a reference to Buchanan's infamous "culture war" speech at the 1992 Republican National Convention.MST3K 621 - The Beast of Yucca Flats.
In the BoJack Horseman episode "Our A-Story is a 'D' Story," a member of a neo-Nazi prison gang asks Todd "Why in the name of Pat Buchanan are you dressed like a Latin King?"Our A-Story is a "D" Story/Quotes
==See also==
*Chronicles (magazine): Archaic, right-wing magazine which Buchanan writes for.
*Paleoconservatism: A far-right ideology that combines hardline social conservatism, nationalism, and 17th-century fiscal policy. Essentially, it is a scary a revival of Alexander Hamilton's antiquated ideals.
*Hunter S. Thompson
*Donald Trump: Racist demagogue and ideological successor both economically and politically, up to and including the racism. Like Buchanan, he was outspoken in his criticism of U.S.-Israeli aid... until he won the presidency and revealed that he was just another Zionist neocon.
*conspiracism, fascism, ignorance, Anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, nativism, etc. (wouldn't be nice to crash the servers with too long a list)
==Notes==
==References==
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