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A Fond Farewell to Barry GoldwaterMay 29, 1998 --- New York (APJP) -- Barry Goldwater, one of the most important figures in postwar American politics, died today in Arizona at the age of 89.
You may be surprised to learn that in 1964, a young woman with a growing interest in American politics by the name of Hillary Rodham was a Goldwater girl!
When I mentioned this to my dad -- who shared with Barry Goldwater conservative political views and a passion for ham radio -- he joked "That must have been what killed him -- he must have found out about Hillary!"
As First Lady, she and her husband had praised Barry Goldwater, the elder statesman of American conservatism, for his support of both the right of gay individuals to serve in the military and abortion rights. Goldwater had said "The rights that we have under the Constitution cover anything we want to do, as long as its not harmful. I can't see any way in the world that being a gay can cause damage to somebody else." He called his party's opposition to gays in the military "just plain dumb… You don't need to be straight to fight and die for your country, you just need to shoot straight!"
These views angered social conservatives in the GOP leadership and Christian activists allied with the GOP -- who were still stinging from comments Goldwater had made a decade earlier:
On the other hand, he refused to take very much credit for what is considered his greatest achievement: revitalizing the Conservative movement in the late 1950s through his Presidential run in 1964, laying an early and crucial foundation for the Reagan era. In 1992, he let his views be known during an ABC interview:
"The Goldwater movement WAS the Conservative movement in the '60s," said Pat Buchanan today on CNN. "He was our Jack Kennedy… Goldwater was ahead of his time, but his vision finally saw fruition in Ronald Reagan."
Goldwater's best-known quote comes from his acceptance speech at the 1964 Republican Convention:
Goldwater may have been joking -- but many Americans in 1964 were convinced that Goldwater might have done just that. This impression was reinforced by a famous television commercial, one of the most negative and effective in history, depicting a girl counting the petals on a flower as a missile countdown faded in, and a huge mushroom cloud enveloped the screen.
The commercial ran just once, but generated so many headlines and stories on television news shows that it had a huge impact on voters, and was a contributing factor in Lyndon Johnson's landslide victory over Goldwater, who only won six states.
But Goldwater's Presidential campaign had brought together the core of conservative thinkers in the GOP, consolidating them into a formidable political and intellectual team that would share financial and informational resources and coordinate long-term strategy and short-term tactics -- and eventually play the key role in putting Ronald Reagan in the White House.
He considered his last great accomplishment in politics the Pentagon Reform Bill of 1986 -- a legislative achievement of which he was particularly proud, and which General Colin Powell would credit as the primary reason for the swift and overwhelming victory in the Gulf War.
Goldwater's health had deteriorated in the last few years: he suffered a serious stroke in 1996 and was diagnosed with symptoms of Alzheimer's Disease last year.
Goldwater himself would probably have had a lot to say about the reactions to his death, but his own words from 1992 speak eloquently enough: "I'd just like to be remembered as an honest person who tried."
We'll remember him not only that way, but as a politician who cut through the muck, got to the point, and let you know where he stood.
For example, Goldwater on Gingrich: "He talks too much."
'Nuff said, Barry!
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