PAT BUCHANAN, ALLY OF CONVENIENCE

So Pat Buchanan is endorsing Bush despite his great misgivings.

If Bush loses, his conversion to neoconservatism, the Arian heresy of the American Right, will have killed his presidency. Yet, in the contest between Bush and Kerry, I am compelled to endorse the president of the United States. Why? Because, while Bush and Kerry are both wrong on Iraq, Sharon, NAFTA, the WTO, open borders, affirmative action, amnesty, free trade, foreign aid, and Big Government, Bush is right on taxes, judges, sovereignty, and values. Kerry is right on nothing.

I am no Pat Buchanan fan, not by a long shot. I think Bush is right about most of the issues where Pat Buchanan says he and Kerry are wrong. I enjoyed reading the essay not only because it might help Bush to win but because Pat Buchanan highlights the diversity of ideas on the Republican side The Democrats, by comparison, are intellectually bankrupt.

Buchanan's differences with Bush are so stark, however, that it does look like the Republicans are headed for a civil war if Bush wins. Bring it on! There is great potential for enlightening debates within the Republican coalition. I hope the Democrats will join in, too, grabbing Republican positions in a smorgasbord way. I look forward to free-market Democrats, liberal-interventionist Democrats, deregulation Democrats, trying to make their party viable again after the crushing defeat of 2004. It will be great to watch.