THE ROBERT W. WHITAKER ARCHIVE

Linda Tripp has had it! Liberals are going after her, which means respectable conservatives are after her. She is helpless now, and libs hate her, so respectable conservatives will earn their "respectable" label by cutting her throat.

This is what respectable conservatism is all about. As M. Stanton Evans pointed out, "Conservatives always leave their wounded."

Actually, if you want to be a really respectable conservative like Kemp or Hatch or Buckley, you have to do more than that. You have to cut the throats of your wounded.

The word "respectable" is absolutely essential if one is to make good money as a right winger. You don't get on national television without it, and you don't get a national column that is generally published without it. Unless liberals declare you to be a "respectable" rightist, you become a fascist, you become "anaziwhowantstokillsixmillionjews," and nobody will touch you.

This wonderful term "respectable" comes at a price. That price is exacted by the liberals who control our national dialogue.

Even Pat Buchanan, who is as far right as he is allowed to be, always chooses respectability first, no matter how ridiculous he has to be to do it. If he must choose between conservatism and respectability, a respectable conservative never hesitates to choose respectability.

Look at the craziness even Buchanan has indulged in to keep his "respectable" label

An outright racist appeared on Crossfire way back when Buchanan and Bradley were on it, and Buchanan joined the liberal commentator Bradley absolutely. Buchanan was in danger of being called anaziwhowantstokillsixmillionjews, so he had to jump through every hoop Bradley wanted him to.

In his desperation to prove to Bradley that he was respectable, Buchanan agreed to the most incredible proposition. Buchanan insisted that American soldiers fought in World War II to allow massive nonwhite immigration into Europe!

Bradley told the racist what all liberals always say about World War II. He said that American soldiers fought and died so that Europe would accept massive third world immigration and integrate.

The racist said, reasonably enough, that had American soldiers thought that was what they were fighting for, they would have refused to fight.

Buchanan had to prove he was not an Evil Racist, so he backed Bradley all the way. He insisted again and again that American soldiers went to Europe to fight and die for massive third world immigration and integration!

I could not believe Buchanan had done that. But he said the same thing again. Then he INSISTED on it again.

The segregated United States Army, said Buchanan, fought to make Europe brown!

He agreed to everything else Bradley said. In this debate, any deviation from the liberal line would have threatened his status as a respectable conservative, so all bets were off.

I don't think I have ever been so disappointed in anybody in politics as I was in Buchanan on that program. He absolutely CRAWLED!

The left NEVER deserts its wounded. When the USSR fell, Phil Donahue immediately teamed up with one of the Communist Party's Russian defenders in a joint program. Nobody attacks Communists without catching it from liberals.

And if you call a liberal a Communist, he'll look you straight in the eye and tell you where to go. He won't let you call any other liberal a Commie, either.

But if you want to scare off a respectable conservative, say "NAZIWHOWANTSTOKILLSIXMILLIONJEWS" loudly and he will panic and give you anything you ask for.

And if a liberal calls anybody anaziwhowantstokillsixmillionjews, every respectable conservative demands the right to join the lynch mob.

If liberals give you the label "respectable," you got it made. You become a Jack Kemp or an Orrin Hatch or a William Buckley. A respectable conservative becomes half of the political dialogue. Jesse Jackson allows him to come on "Both Sides."

Remember that it was not Orrin Hatch or William Buckley who was out there defending Paula Jones when she was alone against Clinton. It was the "fever swamp" (AKA, not respectable) right that stood by her.

Linda Tripp has ceased to be of use to Starr, and the liberals want her bad. So she has had it, and only the "fever swamp" right will fail to declare her Evil.