Imitating Israel The Rich Secede Conservative Kerouac Elitism & Its Enemies ANDREW J. BACEVICH MIKE LOFGREN ROBERT DEAN LURIE SAMUEL W. GOLDMAN SEPTEMBER 2012 What’s Exceptional About America? IDEAS OVER IDEOLOGY • PRINCIPLES OVER PARTY What’s Exceptional About America? RICHARD GAMBLE When News Becomes theamericanconservative.com This Month Vol. 11, No. 9, SEPTEMBER 2012 8 12 49 ARTICLES COVER STORY ARTS & LETTERS 16 How We Became Israel 12 American Exceptionalisms 42 Twilight of the Elites: America Peace means conict for Federalism, not empire, makes Aer Meritocracy by Tel Aviv—and us. us unique Christopher Hayes ANDREW J. BACEVICH RICHARD GAMBLE SAMUEL W. GOLDMAN 19 Revolt of the Rich FRONT LINES 45 e Political Philosophy of e super-auent secede from Alexander Hamilton by Michael America 6 Dudes shirk parenthood Federici MIKE LOFGREN ROD DREHER GEORGE W. CAREY 24 LePage Against the Machine 7 Syria’s gang war 47 ey Eat Puppies, Don’t ey? Maine’s Tea Party governor WILLIAM S. LIND by Christopher Buckley SCOTT GALUPO MICHAEL BRENDAN DOUGHERTY 8 Alexander Cockburn, RIP 28 Battle of Columbus RON UNZ 49 e Revenge of Geography: What the Map Tells Us About “Fast and Furious” gets a sequel 9 Obama recruits for Republicans Coming Conicts and the Battle ED WARNER JORDAN BLOOM Against Fate by Robert D. 31 e Right & the Drug War COMMENTARY Kaplan Will conservatives embrace WILLIAM ANTHONY HAY legalization? 5 We are all isolationists now ANTHONY GREGORY 51 e Passion of Bradley Manning: 11 Al-Qaeda’s master plan e Story of the Suspect Behind 34 Killer Culture PATRICK J. BUCHANAN the Largest Security Breach in We’ve been anesthetized U.S. History by Chase Madar to violence 18 Two new wars for us CHRIS BRAY R.J. STOVE PHILIP GIRALDI 53 e Republican Brain: e 38 e Conservative Kerouac 27 Defense budget freeze Science of Why ey Deny An icon of rebellion who MICHAEL D. OSTROLENK Science—and Reality by Chris loved his Church 37 Mind your language Mooney ROBERT DEAN LURIE HENRY CHAPPELL RICHARD M. WEAVER 41 Gore Vidal in letters 55 “e Best Man” on Broadway NOAH MILLMAN BILL KAUFFMAN 58 Olympic gold TAKI Cover illustration: Michael Hogue SEPTEMBER 2012 THE AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE 3 e American Conservative Publisher Letters Ron Unz Editor Daniel McCarthy Senior Editors Rod Dreher Daniel Larison Mark Nugent BUCKLEY AND RUSHER the Buckleys’ Manhattan apartment. Editorial Director, Digital Wick Allison’s review of David Frisk’s He continued doing so even when the Maisie Allison biography of William A. Rusher, If Not directors’ meetings became largely cer- Associate Editor Jordan Bloom Us, Who? (July 2012), is (mostly) ter- emonial aer June 2004, when WFB National Correspondent ric. Allison, following Frisk, accords transferred the National Review stock to Michael Brendan Dougherty Bill Rusher his rightful place in the a new entity, Constitutional Enterprises. Contributing Editors vanguard of the conservative move- Indeed, David Frisk, in the book under W. James Antle III, Andrew J. Bacevich, ment, and he is de and perceptive in review, records WAR’s attendance at the Doug Bandow, Jeremy Beer, James Bovard, Patrick Deneen, Michael Desch, Richard Gamble, his characterization of Rusher. Allison’s very last directors’ dinner, in October Philip Giraldi, David Gordon, Paul Gottfried, review is also beautifully written, with 2007, and reports that “Rusher sadly Freddy Gray, Leon Hadar, Peter Hitchens, some stunning metaphors. conded that Buckley, Van Galbraith, Philip Jenkins, Christopher Layne, Chase Madar, Eric Margolis, James Pinkerton, It is all the more a pity, then, that Al- and others of their generation seemed Justin Raimondo, Fred Reed, Stuart Reid, lison couldn’t resist those three sentenc- to have aged considerably.” Sheldon Richman, Steve Sailer, John Schwenkler, Jordan Michael Smith, es concluding his account of the 1990 LINDA BRIDGES R.J. Stove, Kelley Vlahos, omas E. Woods Jr. meeting at Bill Buckley’s home in Con- Editor-at-Large, National Review Associate Publisher necticut at which he, Rusher, and John New York, N.Y. Jon Basil Utley O’Sullivan argued against Buckley’s in- Publishing Consultant tended sale of National Review to Rupert Wick Allison replies: Ronald E. Burr Murdoch. In those sentences Allison anks to Linda Bridges for her good Editorial Assistants doesn’t exactly say but more than implies words and for her corrections to the re- Andrew Downing, Nicole Gibson, that WFB’s anger over their opposition cord. I was wrong to conate the timing Simeon Morris was what led to the departure from Na- and therefore connect John O’Sullivan’s Founding Editors Patrick J. Buchanan, Scott McConnell, tional Review of Allison and O’Sullivan, departure to the Rupert Murdoch inci- Taki eodoracopulos and that it led also to a permanent rup- dent. Indeed, John was agnostic on the ture between WFB and WAR. question. And, of course, I was plainly e American Ideas Institute I have never known the full story wrong about Buckley and Rusher’s con- President of those departures, but it seems a bit tinuance of their long association, for Wick Allison unlikely that if Buckley were angry which I apologize. Buckley and I had e American Conservative, Vol. 11, No. 9, September 2012 (ISSN 1540-966X). Reg. enough about his colleagues’ disagree- lunch once a year until his death, and it U.S. Pat. & Tm. Oc. Published 12 times a ment to re them, he would wait nearly is no surprise that he and Rusher would year by e American Ideas Institute, 4040 Fairfax Drive, Ste. 140, Arlington, VA 22203. a year in Allison’s case and seven years meet as frequently as their travels per- Periodicals postage paid Arlington, VA and in O’Sullivan’s. mitted. Linda’a correction reminds us of additional mailing oces. Printed in the USA. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to e As for Bill Rusher, who had already the generosity and loyalty that were the American Conservative, P.O. Box 9030, Maple retired, Allison writes, “I doubt that hallmarks of both of these great men. Shade, NJ 08052-9030. Rusher was ever invited back.” Since Subscription rates: $49.97 per year (12 issues) in the U.S., $69.97 in Canada (U.S. funds), and YANKEE COME HOME such an estrangement would have been $89.97 other foreign via airmail. Back issues: sad indeed, I’m very glad to be able—as In “Neighborhood Watch” (July 2012), $6.00 (prepaid) per copy in USA, $7.00 in the keeper of the Buckley calendar—to W.W. Chip claims Ron Paul is “naïve” Canada (U.S. funds). For subscription orders, payments, and other report that the two Bills next lunched and “simplistic” in calling for the re- subscription inquiries— together in May 1991, one of many moval of the American military from By phone: 800-579-6148 meetings over the ensuing 17 years. In foreign soil. I can only ask: what is naïve (outside the U.S./Canada 856-380-4131) Via Web: www.theamericanconservative.com May 1992, WFB asked WAR to serve and simplistic about this long overdue By mail: e American Conservative, P.O. Box as moderator for three “Firing Line” corrective to foolish American inter- 9030, Maple Shade, NJ 08052-9030 shows he taped in Taipei. ventionism? ere is no valid reason Please allow 6–8 weeks for delivery of your Furthermore, Bill Rusher remained why U.S. troops are garrisoned all over rst issue. Inquiries and letters to the editor should be an active member of National Review’s this planet. Mr. Paul is right on target in sent to [email protected]. For advertising board of directors, faithfully attend- proposing to bring our troops home. sales call Ronald Burr at 703-893-3632. For editorial, call 703-875-7600. ing the twice-yearly directors’ meet- TOM RAMSDELL is issue went to press on August 16, 2012. ings (followed, always, by dinner) at Oreland, Pa. Copyright 2012 The American Conservative. 4 THE AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE SEPTEMBER 2012 { Vol. 11, No. 9, SEPTEMBER 2012 } No More Isolationists enry James was “cosmopolitan isolation- antipathies against particular Nations, and passion- ist,” Henry Cabot Lodge an “isolation- ate attachments for others” and advised us “to steer ist imperialist.” Randolph Bourne was clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the an isolationist who “espoused principles foreign world.” President Jeerson proved to be one Hthat we would today call internationalist,” while the as well, when he called for “Peace, commerce, and ever bellicose Newt Gingrich is an isolationist be- honest friendship with all nations ... entangling alli- cause he favors “energy independence.” Such are the ances with none.” And John Quincy Adams, despite lessons of a new book—Promise and Peril: America being author of the doctrine that carries President at the Dawn of a New Age by Christopher McKnight Monroe’s name, sounded like the worst isolation- Nichols—and a recent review of that book in Dissent. ist of all when he said America “goes not abroad in Don’t laugh. e smear “isolationist” has been search of monsters to destroy. She is the well-wisher used so oen and in so many contexts that a case to the freedom and independence of all. She is the can be made for any of these gures tting the bill. champion and vindicator only of her own.” President Bush’s critics on the le routinely counted Each of these men fails the adventuresome ideo- him an isolationist, despite his invasion of Iraq, be- logue’s test, whether administered by the le or the cause he was a unilateralist. (Even that’s not strictly right. e wars that followed the French Revolu- true: the war did, aer all, involve a certain “Coali- tion, aer all, were exactly the kinds of things neo- tion of the Willing.”) However inaccurate its use may conservatives today would clamor to ght—though have been, the term allowed progressives to believe on which side is unclear.