In Memoriam: Jeane J. Kirkpatrick, 1926-2006

You probably have to be over 40 to remember Jeane Kirkpatrick, who died this week at the age of 80. Her's was a towering intellect whose gifts were central in creating the foundation for the successful foreign policy of President Reagan. (Wikipedia bio here). She was another Democrat, like Reagan, who realized that the once great political party had abandoned it's historical legacy.

She spoke to the Republican National Convention in 1984 and coined the phrases "Blame America First" and "San Francisco Democrats." Here's a portion of her remarks:

Address by the Honorable Jeane Kirkpatrick
1984 Republican National Convention
Dallas Texas
August 20, 1984

...A recent article in The New York Times noted that "the foreign policy line that emerged from the Democratic National Convention in San Francisco is a distinct shift from the policies of such [Democratic] presidents as Harry S Truman, John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson."

I agree.

I shall speak tonight of foreign affairs even though the other party's convention barely touched the subject.

When the San Francisco Democrats treat foreign affairs as an afterthought, as they did, they behaved less like a dove or a hawk than like an ostrich - convinced it would shut out the world by hiding its head in the sand.

Today, foreign policy is central to the security, to the freedom, to the prosperity, even to the survival of the United States.

And our strength, for which we make many sacrifices, is essential to the independence and freedom of our allies and our friends.
...
Blame America First

They said that saving Grenada from terror and totalitarianism was the wrong thing to do - they didn't blame Cuba or the communists for threatening American students and murdering Grenadians - they blamed the United States instead.

But then, somehow, they always blame America first.

When our Marines, sent to Lebanon on a multinational peacekeeping mission with the consent of the United States Congress, were murdered in their sleep, the "blame America first crowd" didn't blame the terrorists who murdered the Marines, they blamed the United States.

But then, they always blame America first.

When the Soviet Union walked out of arms control negotiations, and refused even to discuss the issues, the San Francisco Democrats didn't blame Soviet intransigence. They blamed the United States.

But then, they always blame America first.

When Marxist dictators shoot their way to power in Central America, the San Francisco Democrats don't blame the guerrillas and their Soviet allies, they blame United States policies of 100 years ago.

But then, they always blame America first.

The American people know better.

Some things never change.

Jeane Kirkpatrick was the original "neocon." As U.S. Ambassador at the United Nations she took the diplomatic fight to the enemy over Soviet encroachment in Central America and history showed her viewpoint to be correct. But it was also that strong stand against communism that made her a target for the left.

I never had the opportunity to meet her while I was at Columbia University in New York. She had been scheduled to address Barnard College, which is affiliated with Columbia and Kirkpatrick's alma mater. But the lovers of diverse viewpoints (from approved socialist sources only) denied her that right to speak and my right to listen.

Her performance at the United Nations was a breath of fresh air and served to spark democracy movements which brought millions to freedom from the Philippines to Central America and ultimately Eastern Europe. Like John Bolton, she would never be confirmed in that post today.

After her service with the Reagan Administration she returned to the American Enterprise Institute which offers the following:

In Memoriam: Jeane J. Kirkpatrick, 1926-2006

AEI senior fellow Jeane J. Kirkpatrick, who joined the Institute in 1978, died yesterday. As a young political scientist at Georgetown University, Kirkpatrick wrote the first major study of the role of women in modern politics, Political Woman, which was published in 1974. Her work on the McGovern-Fraser Commission, which was formed in the aftermath of the Democratic Party's tumultuous 1968 convention and changed the way party delegates were chosen, led to Dismantling the Parties: Reflections on Party Reform and Party Decomposition, which AEI published in 1978. Yet it was an essay written for Commentary magazine in 1979, "Dictatorships and Double Standards" (later expanded into a full-length book), that launched her into the political limelight. In the article, Kirkpatrick chronicled the failures of the Carter administration's foreign policy and argued for a clearer understanding of the American national interest. Her essay matched Ronald Reagan's instincts and convictions, and when he became president, he appointed her to represent the United States at the United Nations. Ambassador Kirkpatrick was a member of the president's cabinet and the National Security Council. The United States has lost a great patriot and champion of freedom, and AEI mourns our beloved colleague.

[More on Ambassador Kirkpatrick's work . . . ]

Ambassador Kirkpatrick ranks among the other great lions of the 20th Century. She dared to see a vision of a better world and worked tirelessly to make a difference, not just enforce the status quo, but to bring light, hope and freedom to the world. She will be missed.

Also posted at the Wide Awakes.