Beware Your Enemies’ Posthumous Praise

HBO’s new documentary, ‘Mr. Conservative’ about the life and politics of Barry Goldwater, told in part from the perspective of his granddaughter, has raised a few hackles from the Right and drawn praise from the Left. Considering that many of us on this end of the political spectrum see Goldwater’s ideas (his own people founded the Libertarians) and writings as the watershed event defining what some call the “true” conservatism, it unsettles the stomach to see those on the Far Left speak well of him.

Well, they apparently don’t, really. They will likely use the chance to impugn current members of the conservative movement by claiming they are straying from Goldwater’s purity. Doubtless we’ll see Reagan invoked next in the same manner.

For a man who wrote “The Conscience of a Conservative” and the lesser-read “Conscience of the Majority”, Goldwater was a true visionary. He was able to distill so much of what it was to be conservative in an era of unbridled liberalism (the era that brought us the Great Society and the Selfish generation) and he gave conservatives a star to steer by. When I originally read Conscience of a Conservative some years ago, I thought on not only how much I found myself agreeing with what he wrote, but on how much of it (save for the nuclear confrontation with the Soviets part) was still relevant to this day. Incidentally, Reagan made use of that last part to great effectiveness. What a surprise, Goldwater was right again. I have often looked at Goldwater and John C. Calhoun as heirs to the same tradition, attempts to reign in the federal beast whenever possible and make certain it sticks to its enumerated powers. I highly recommend reading both of their works.

Much is made of Goldwater not liking the fact that religious conservatives were being seen as the “only” conservatives and there’s a point to that. Conservative thought draws from the wellspring of Judeo-Christian morality and so such an association was only a matter of time. Intermeshing the ideas means some aspects might be lost in the debate regarding the religious aspect of the movement. To say that modern conservatives somehow thusly are detached from Goldwater’s legacy by their faith, though, is disingenuous at best.

I will say this, when comparing those who call themselves conservative in this day and age with Goldwater’s thoughts on conservatism, many fall short. Certainly our President falls short as well as a vast majority of Senators and a staggering number of Representatives. There are few true conservatives in Congress and barely four on the Supreme Court. To say that conservatives or even “neo-cons” dominate the government is to say you really are clueless when it comes to what conservatism really is or the statements and voting records of your elected officials.

Liberalism, even in moderation, still dominates this country and it seems to draw many of the political class under its wing. From that standpoint then you can certainly make an argument that most aren’t “Goldwater” conservatives. Libertarians, specifically the more conservative Libertarians of the Midwest often see themselves as descendants of that last “true” conservatism as well and often it is their base reason why they cannot identify with the Republicans despite the latter’s professed conservative tradition. Those Libertarians see a weakness in the Republican tradition in their compromise with the Left and that they are willing to betray their principles for some imagined political gain.

So, from that point of view, perhaps the Left is correct and their ridicule of those Republicans who have sold out will have some basis in reality (a rarity for the Left), but I bet one thing you won’t see in the documentary is that there are still plenty who share the conservative ideals of the late great Arizona Senator and who attempt to carry on in his memory if not in his name.

Among those who are supposed to offer quotes in this documentary are Hillary Clinton, Al Franken, and Ted Kennedy; not exactly what I’d call people who could speak authoritatively on issues of conservatism or on Barry Goldwater. That William F. Buckley Jr. isn’t interviewed (from what I hear) speaks volumes about the slant of the piece. They don’t want to showcase the man. They want to use him as a tool to make a political statement favoring the Left. You need only look at the comedy cavalcade of characters above to infer that. If you want to know the real Barry Goldwater, read his autobiographical work “With No Apologies”. If you want to see another Leftist hatchet piece, make sure to tune into HBO for 90 minutes of fun and frivolity.