The Silent Majority
TimeWatch Editorial
April 02, 2017
There has been recent controversy regarding the involvement of Vladimir Putin and Russia, in the 2016 Presidential Election of the United States. There have also been many accusations leveled at some of the individuals who are connected to or part of the Presidents entourage, who have shown a certain affiliation with or admiration for the President of Russia. For the most part, the individuals who have been asking questions or pushing for some sort of investigation regarding Russia’s influence are, Democrats or media types who of course are simply pursuing their professional responsibilities. There has been, however comparative silence from the Republican side of the house. With the exception of men like John McCain, Lindsey Graham, as I have said before there has been a tendency toward silence, except when specifically asked a direct question. Even then, these experienced and in many cases long serving Representative have focused more on what other presidents have done, or showed more concern for “the leaks which they see as the real problem. One can almost always tell to which party a “talking head” belongs just by the answers given, or the positions held. This is why it is certainly worth mentioning when we encounter a definite Republican who is willing to express out loud, a somewhat different opinion then his party members are will to state out loud.
According to his website, Patrick Buchanan has been a senior advisor to three Presidents, twice a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, and the nominee of the Reform Party in 2000. Mr. Buchanan became a nationally syndicated columnist, and in May of 1982 began as a panelist on NBC’s “The McLaughlin Group” and a co-host of CNN’s new show “Crossfire.” As White House as Director of Communications, he accompanied President Reagan to his Geneva summit with Mikhail Gorbachev and was with President Reagan in Hofde House at Reykjavik which has been described as the decisive summit of the Cold War. On March 31, 2017, Pat Buchanan published an article of the WorldNetDaily website. The website is described by the Free Encyclopedia as politically conservative American news and opinion website and online news aggregator. It was founded in May 1997 by Joseph Farah with the stated intent of "exposing wrongdoing, corruption and abuse of power". The website publishes news, editorials, and opinion columns, while also aggregating content from other publications. The title of Mr. Buchanan’s article is “Is Putin the ‘Pre-eminent Statesman’ of Our Times?” Here is how his article begins.
"If we were to use traditional measures for understanding leaders, which involve the defense of borders and national flourishing, Putin would count as the preeminent statesman of our time. "On the world stage, who could vie with him?" So asks Chris Caldwell of the Weekly Standard in a remarkable essay in Hillsdale College's March issue of its magazine. What elevates Putin above all other 21st-century leaders? "When Putin took power in the winter of 1999-2000, his country was defenseless. It was bankrupt. It was being carved up by its new kleptocratic elites, in collusion with its old imperial rivals, the Americans. Putin changed that.” Patrick Buchanan, “Is Putin the ‘Pre-eminent Statesman’ of Our Times?” WorldNetDaily website, March 31, 2017
Mr. Buchanan has always, as I remember him, held his own opinion on any subject, regardless of the size of the opposition. But in this particular case, I am more curious concerning the opinions of those who until now have been absolutely silent concerning the matter of the possibility of Putin’s or Russia’s intrusion into the electoral process. Listen to how Mr. Buchanan continues.
“Putin's approval rating, after 17 years in power, exceeds that of any rival Western leader. But while his impressive strides toward making Russia great again explain why he is revered at home and in the Russian diaspora, what explains Putin's appeal in the West, despite a press that is every bit as savage as President Trump's? Answer: Putin stands against the Western progressive vision of what mankind's future ought to be. Years ago, he aligned himself with traditionalists, nationalists and populists of the West, and against what they had come to despise in their own decadent civilization. What they abhorred, Putin abhorred. He is a God-and-country Russian patriot. He rejects the New World Order established at the Cold War's end by the United States. Putin puts Russia first.” Patrick Buchanan, “Is Putin the ‘Pre-eminent Statesman’ of Our Times?” WorldNetDaily website, March 31, 2017
So the question is, while the average American holds fast to the ancient position of anti-Russian-ism, is it possible that quite a large portion of the political and religious leadership class share Mr. Buchanan’s obvious admiration? If this is so then is it also possible that the same kind of quiet esteem might also exist in Europe. That perhaps is why Putin’s influence is also being felt there. Buchanan thinks so! Listen to this!
“And in defying the Americans he speaks for those millions of Europeans who wish to restore their national identities and recapture their lost sovereignty from the supranational European Union. Putin also stands against the progressive moral relativism of Western elite that has cut its Christian roots to embrace secularism and hedonism.” Patrick Buchanan, “Is Putin the ‘Pre-eminent Statesman’ of Our Times?” WorldNetDaily website, March 31, 2017
We have been shocked at the President’s response when he was reminded that Putin is a killer in an interview not that long ago. At that moment he seemed to be alone, and cold with his response that we kill too. But at that time Mr. Buchanan was not responding out loud so that we could hear; now he speaks and we can hear. Listen.
“The U.S. establishment loathes Putin because, they say, he is an aggressor, a tyrant, a "killer." He invaded and occupies Ukraine. His old KGB comrades assassinate journalists, defectors and dissidents. Yet while politics under both czars and commissars has often been a blood sport in Russia, what has Putin done to his domestic enemies to rival what our Arab ally Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has done to the Muslim Brotherhood he overthrew in a military coup in Egypt? What has Putin done to rival what our NATO ally President Erdogan has done in Turkey, jailing 40,000 people since last July's coup — or our Philippine ally Rodrigo Duterte, who has presided over the extrajudicial killing of thousands of drug dealers?” Patrick Buchanan, “Is Putin the ‘Pre-eminent Statesman’ of Our Times?” WorldNetDaily website, March 31, 2017
Perhaps there are many more who feel as Mr. Buchanan feels. Perhaps many of them are silent like he was. We must therefore be guarded lest they act without speaking. A fake smile is a dangerous thing. Be warned!
Cameron A. Bowen
