Buckley on Buchanan:
Anti-semitic Remarks

A Synopsis of a National Review Article

From: daveshmave@aol.com (DaveShmave)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.jewish
Date: 16 Feb 1996 13:50:09 -0500
Message-ID: <4g2jl1$hj@newsbf02.news.aol.com>

I just did a study of William Buckley's essay in the National Review, In Search of Anti-Semitism, dated December 30, 1991. In the article, Buckley concludes that Pat Buchanan was ... "a Gentile who said things about Jews that could not reasonably be interpreted as other than anti- Semitic in tone and in substance."

Buckley cites several remarks by Buchanan which, taken together, constitute a general pattern of anti-Semitism....

What did Buchanan say?

Buckley quoted TV comments regarding the Persian Gulf War in which Buchanan said, "'There are only two groups that are beating the drums for war in the Middle East - the Israeli Defense Ministry and its amen corner in the United States.'" Buckley called this "a massive inaccuracy, namely that 'only' two specified groups favored military action against Hussein."

Buckley added another quote from Buchanan who said, "'The Israelis want this war desperately because they want the United States to destroy the Iraqi war machine. They want us to finish them off. They don't care about our relations with the Arab world.'" Buckley commented that if Buchanan "had quoted the extent of the public's support (of the war), he would have been suggesting that Israelis manipulate 75 per cent of American public support even for causes that are strategically anti-American."

Buckley also writes, "again on television, (Buchanan) came in with the wisecrack that Congress was 'Israeli- occupied' territory."

Buckley adds that Buchanan "pronounced the names of four important men who influence public policy, whom he identified with the hyper-bellicose wing of the anti-Saddam forces. They were. . . A.M. Rosenthal ... Richard Perk ... Charles Krauthammer ... and Henry Kissinger." Buckley says that the most conspicuous thing they have in common is that they are all Jewish.

Buckley continued, "Pat Buchanan went on to write that if we went to war, the fighting would be done by 'kids with names like McAllister, Murphy, Gonzales, and Leroy Brown.' There is no way to read that sentence without concluding that Pat Buchanan was suggesting that American Jews manage to avoid personal military exposure even while advancing military policies they (uniquely?) engender."

Buckley says that in the ensuing controversy, "Buchanan told a reporter from Time magazine, 'I don't retract a single word.'"

Individually, Buckley says, these comments could possibly be defended, but, taken together, they present a clear pattern of anti-Semitism. The comments suggest that the Jewish lobby unduly influences American foreign policy and this can inflame resentment against Jews.

I was further concerned upon hearing about the bulletin in the news today that Buchanan's campaign manager had just resigned because he had been speaking to Aryan and militia groups. Once again, this could be defended by Buchanan by saying he didn't know anything about it. But the pattern speaks for itself. And why would these groups seek to support Pat Buchanan? Does he vocalize the opinions of these hate groups?

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