Firing Line with William F. Buckley Jr. "Presidential Hopeful: Ronald Reagan"

A Must Purchase For Conservatives!
William F. Buckley Jr. does an excellent job of asking then Former CA Gov. Reagan's response to a series of hypothetical issues that might come up if he were President. For 50 minutes Buckley covers issues across the board from economic policy discussions on inflation, bonds, and ways to strengthen the value of the dollar to how a President Reagan would handle a hypothetical strike of Postal Workers, a hypothetical which later became reality with the 1981 PATCO Strike.

Reagan gives real,substantive answers which is something you did not see in the recent 2008 election debates. During the primary debates candidates were forced to respond to petty issues with yes or no answers and in one ridiculous case, a show of hands. In this DVD you are left knowing Exactly where Reagan stands on the issues. There is no "I meant it this way" or any other BS excuse you hear from current political leaders(Republicans and Democrats).

If the GOP wants to break free of the Bush...

Presidential Candidate Reagan visits William Buckley; and President Elect Obama is Taking Notes
"I am going to talk of controversial things. I make no apology for this."

So began Ronald Reagan's first public address to the nation in the Autumn of 1964. So was the nature of the man: forthright, self-assured and honest to a fault. In 1964, Ronald Reagan (see: In the Face of Evil: Reagan's War in Word and Deed) was merely an actor; and 16 years later, on January 14, 1980, he was on the set of Firing Line - only months from becoming America's 40th president - meeting with the host, William F. Buckley (see: The Reagan I Knew), for one of the most stimulating and enchanting hours of television to date.

Hard as it is to believe, there was a time when Ronald Reagan was best addressed as "Governor Reagan." But there was such a time when Governor Ronald Reagan's ongoing candidacy for the US presidency was thought immeasurably...

The Great William F. Buckley as total sell out, kissing Ronald Reagan's backside.
First, as a Liberal, there are a lot of things I respected and loved about William F. Buckley Jr., not the least of which was his Firing Line program, and his sense of decency, fair play, and the integrity with which he ran that show. There was no fear about going up against opposition individuals or groups, even when he loses the debate he is marvelous and quintessentially American. No conservative announcer of today would ever do what Buckley did fearlessly, let the American form of government work. WFBJr, never shouted down someone on his show, or called them names of referred to the other side as having a mental disorder.

HOWEVER, with the advent of Ronald Reagan, the Conservative movement migrated to the Newt Gingrich admirers of the fascist
form of government and news. This program is the seed of that, and so as much as I'd like to give it 5/5 for Buckley, I have to give it a 1/5 for allowing himself to be used like this, and to Ronald Reagan for allowing...

Click to Editorial Reviews