| | | | Vin Weber on Conversations with Bill Kristol Dear Friends,
The Foundation for Constitutional Government is pleased to announce the release of a conversation with Vin Weber on Conversations with Bill Kristol. Chapter descriptions are attached (click on the images below to view each chapter).
Vin Weber is a former congressman from Minnesota, a respected political strategist, and a thoughtful analyst of American politics. In this Conversation, Weber reflects on Reaganite conservatism and makes the case for continued American leadership in the world. Kristol and Weber also discuss the Trump presidency, its implications for the Republican Party, and whether Trump's election portends a breakup of the two party system.
To view the other Conversations that have been previously posted, click here.
This Conversation and all previous releases are also available as audio podcasts on iTunes and Stitcher.
Best,
Andy Zwick
Executive Director |
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| Below are excerpts from the Conversation: |
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On the Need for American Leadership in the World WEBER: Ronald Reagan believed that the United States needed to lead in the world, and we needed to lead through trade, political activity, and, if necessary, military activity. We were internationalist in that sense. A lot of the reaction to this in the last few years, whether it's the Brexit vote in Britain or Trump, is a reaction against not just American leadership in the world but against the nation sacrificing sovereignty to "global institutions."
We have to differentiate between what I would call internationalism and what has been discredited now as "globalism." I am a nationalist. I believe in America. I don't want America to sacrifice its sovereignty to the UN or anybody else, but I'm also an internationalist in the sense that I think America needs to lead in the world. If we can make that distinction, I think that's still where most people in this country would be. They don't want to give up control of their lives to international institutions, which are in many ways anti-democratic. |
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On the Weakness of Our Political Parties WEBER: Many of the functions political parties [used to have] have been taken over by interest groups. Yes, on the financial side, because you can now raise money quite independent of parties, but I'm thinking more on the issue side. If you're a Republican, you want to make sure that you're okay with the gun people, you want to make sure you're okay with the pro-lifers, you want to make sure you're okay with the anti-tax people. I'm not saying these are illegitimate positions. But [interest groups] have supplanted party leaders in terms of determining the agenda of candidates. |
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On Whether We Benefit from Cooperation with Russia WEBER: It's not just that [Vladimir Putin] is not himself a democratic leader. He has a philosophy of stopping the spread of democracy. That's why we worry about him and that's why I don't know where President [Trump] will go with [Russia]. To say that a better relationship with Russia would be a better thing [for us] is hard for anybody to argue with. I'd rather have better relations with everybody but the question always is, at what cost. There's not much evidence that we can do deals with Russia for which we do not pay far greater cost than we get back in terms of benefits. |
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About Conversations with Bill Kristol. Conversations with Bill Kristol is an online interview program hosted by Weekly Standard editor at large Bill Kristol and produced by The Foundation for Constitutional Government. A forum for substantive, thought-provoking dialogue on pressing issues in the news and American politics, Conversations segments feature informal discussions between Kristol and guests on a diverse array of issues of public concern—from the American presidency and the Middle East peace process to the ideas that have shaped Western civilization. Recent guests include former world chess champion and human rights activist Garry Kasparov, Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer, former Vice President Dick Cheney, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, Obama senior adviser David Axelrod, business founder Peter Thiel, best-selling author Ayaan Hirsi Ali, former commander in Iraq and Afghanistan General David Petraeus, former U.S. Army Vice Chief of Staff General Jack Keane, and Harvard professor Harvey Mansfield. New conversations are released bi-weekly. Users can access Conversations at www.conversationswithbillkristol.org to watch all conversations free-of-charge, read guest biographies, download podcasts and transcripts, and view additional footage. About the Foundation for Constitutional Government. The Foundation for Constitutional Government is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization devoted to supporting the serious study of politics and political philosophy, with particular attention to the Constitutional character of American government. The Foundation's online programming includes Conversations with Bill Kristol, Great Thinkers, a comprehensive site devoted to political philosophers such as John Locke and Alexis de Tocqueville, as well as websites devoted to important Contemporary Thinkers such as Harvey Mansfield, Irving Kristol, and James Q. Wilson. Media contact: Andy Zwick 917-423-1422 AZwick@constitutionalgovt.org |
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