Where the Right Went Wrong: How Neoconservatives Subverted the Reagan Revolution and Hijacked the Bush Presidency

by Patrick J. Buchanan

Book Overview

American Empire is at its apex. We are the sole superpower with no potential challenger for a generation. We can reach any point on the globe with our cruise missiles and smart bombs and our culture penetrates every nook and cranny of the global village. Yet we are now the most hated country on earth, buried beneath a mountain of debt and morally bankrupt. "Where the Right Went Wrong" chronicles how the Bush administration and Beltway conservatives...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312341156
• ISBN13: 9780312341152
• Release Date: September 2004
• Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
• Length: 264 Pages
• Weight: 1.19 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.4" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Eye opening

You know we live in politically polarized times when Patrick Buchanan writes a book that appeals to both conservatives and liberals. Who would have thought such a thing possible? Ten years ago it was impossible. Buchanan was the boogeyman, the old, scary paleoconservative that liberals and leftists alike loved to hold up to universal revulsion. His campaigns for the presidency elicited nothing but scorn from the political "mainstream." His service to Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan served as proof positive to the crackpots that this was a man we could--and should--never trust. Some went so far as to tar Buchanan with the "anti-Semite" brush because he dared to question our government's inflexible support for Israel. They also tossed in the label "racist" for good measure, not because he was one but because his conservatism practically demanded the charge. Well, Patrick Buchanan dealt with these scurrilous labels and continued to appear as the token conservative on the left-leaning network news shows. And he continued to write books warning America of the dangers we face from the big spenders, the morally bankrupt, and the religion haters. "Where the Right Went Wrong" is Patrick Buchanan's magnum opus, a book that convincingly argues that the current (as of this writing) Bush regime is as far from conservative as possible. "Where the Right Went Wrong" is the first Buchanan book I read, and I am impressed. This guy is cogent, smart as a whip, and seems unwilling to sell out his core values. The author put pen to paper because the last four years of the Bush administration have left him feeling decidedly unenthusiastic. Why? The president spends more money than a liberal. The president refuses to confront leftist challenges to the culture. The president used the September 11th attacks to involve us in a destructive and expensive war overseas for no other reason than to fulfill an ideology formulated by his neoconservative advisors. The president has accelerated the outflow of American manufacturing jobs to third world nations under the auspices of NAFTA. The president refuses to stem the tide of illegal immigration across the Mexican border, thus contributing to higher crime rates, an increase in expensive entitlement programs, and a decrease in wages. Then there is the ongoing fiasco in Iraq, an expensive quagmire that squanders American blood and treasure in a fruitless quest to democratize the Middle East. Buchanan spends a significant portion of his book discussing the neoconservatives in the current administration. We all know their names: Paul Wolfowitz, Douglas Feith, and Richard Perle are the most important figures, but there are others. The author contends that these neoconservative elements converted Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Bush to their way of thinking, a way of thinking that endorses imperial campaigns around the globe in the name of spreading democracy. Buchanan defines neoconservatives as former left wing kooks who "converted" to conse

Buchanan--and Nader--More Mainstream than Bush-Kerry!

Edit of 20 Dec 07 to add links. The most shocking aspect of this book, in a positive "eye-opening" sense, is that Pat Buchanan seems to be more in touch with what I as a moderate Republican believe, than anyone associated with the current Bush-Cheney Administration. Although he has some extremist views that I do not agree with, notably a desire to set back attempts to achieve racial equality, on balance his focus on avoiding elective wars, on eliminating the deficit, on reducing the size of government, on restoring state rights, and on putting the Supreme Court back in its place, all strike me as more "representative" than the views of the neo-conservatives, whom he attacks with eloquence and force. There are some gems in the book that most people will enjoy because they are not being discussed. Chief among these is that the 2004 election is about the Supreme Court, and who gets to nominate as many as five new Justices. Fully enjoyable is the author's blistering critique of the Court, and the moral cowardice of the Congress in allowing the Court to take on powers of legislative review never envisioned by the founders. The author's quote of Lincoln is especially compelling on this point. The author is also compelling in his discussion of the role that a common faith must play in keeping democracy alive. As the US foolishly strives to demand "secular democracy" in Iraq, something of an impossibility, the author is moving and thoughtful in showing that the decline of faith (and of the family) has harmed US democracy and its prospects. Over-all the book is a litany of ills associated with an extremist Republican party run amok, funding Chinese weapons development at the same time that it exports jobs, funds the debt of loser nations while running up our own debt, etc. The author provides several lists of poor policy decisions that provide food for thought. Most troubling is the degree to which the USA is hostage to others for 72% of its medicines, 70% of its computer equipment, etc. This is one of the few books I have encountered that covers both economic issues--the author is blistering on how "free" trade is not free, with fullsome detail on how we need *fair* trade--and national security issues. The author clearly understands that we are not winning the war on terrorism, only minor battles, and--in a phrase that especially moved me--that you cannot defeat a faith without a faith of your own. "To defeat a faith you need a faith." I would refer the readers to Doug Johnston's Faith-Based Diplomacy: Trumping Realpolitik as well as Jonathan Schell's The Unconquerable World: Power, Nonviolence, and the Will of the People. Over-all, this book caused me to reflect on the reality that the two so-called "mainstream" political parties are no longer representative of America. Pat Buchanan is right--the moderate Republican Party with conservative values that I thought I was a member of has been hijacked and corrupted. At the same time, the sa

What A Surprise!

I don't know why I picked up this book while browsing in the local book store. I am no fan of Pat Buchanan, or the policies of Ronald Reagan while he was president. Perhaps it was the title. But pick it up I did, and the more I read, the more I was surprised. Me, agreeing with Pat Buchanan? Not on everything, but more than I would have thought. He exposes the foreign policy of the Bush administration for what it is...American Imperialism. Is it in this country's best interest to interfere in the affairs of other countries because we simply don't agree with them? Is it necessary for Iraq and other middle east countries to adopt our form of government, or be labeled as enemies? Is the only way for our country to feel safe is for us to have all the bombs? Nothing less than a complete change of foreign policy is needed, according to the author, or we will continue to fight wars as in Iraq. We will continue to lose jobs overseas in the name of so-called free trade. This is a book for everyone that is concerned with the direction our country has taken. Whether conservative, liberal, progressive, the issues in this book are issues we can all rally around. The Bush administration and the neo-conservatives must go, so says Pat Buchanan. And this is one progressive that agrees with him. Highly recommended!

Scathing Critique of Neocons, and other Unpleasant truths..

Why did Osma attack? "He hates our freedoms" was the laughable explanation. For those of you who want a REAL reasons Pat Buchanan, offers it. Along with a convincing arguement that we are playing into Bin Laden's hands. What's even more shocking is that are 'neoconservitives" are just as radical as Bin Laden. Buchanan doesn't need to name call, he simply quotes neocons like Michael "creative destruction" Leedon - and reveals their radical agenda. The idea that you can bring freedom at gunpoint is not only unworkable, but far from conservtive - it is a notion that has more in common with Trotsky and the Sans coultte than Edmund Burke. Buchanan's book offers a strong arguement that not only are we not winning this 'war' but we are actually strenthening our enemies and ignoring our real problems. Buchanan predictions have repeatedly been confirmed....his book is a closest thing we have to a crystal ball on these matters.