2016: The Wages of Dynastic Politics

by Conrad Black (April 2016)

The moment of truth is at hand for the Republicans. Much of the last 35 years of American political history was determined when James A. Baker, George H. W. Bush’s campaign manager when he sought the presidential nomination in 1980, persuaded Bush to retire from the race before the Pennsylvania primary, as Bush was likely to win it, but Reagan had already secured the nomination. This brought Bush the vice-presidential nomination, and he coasted all the way into the White House eight years later. Bush allowed his party to be split by the semi-delusional mountebank billionaire Ross Perot, which enabled Bill Clinton to be elected president. Clinton had squeaked through to the Democratic nomination after giving the country a foretaste of his later peccadilloes.  more>>>