Customer Reviews

Firing Line with William F. Buckley Jr. "Is It Possible to Be a Good Governor?"

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am grateful to the Hoover Institution at Stanford University for maintaining and releasing these episodes of WFB's Firing Line. There are some quality issues, due to the nature of the decades old archival video tapes, as well as the a/v technology in use at the time. However, the opportunity to witness these discussions is well worth my time and money. I especially enjoyed this episode with the newly-elected Governor Ronald Reagan. Reagan is often billed as a great communicator, which can be a compliment or an insult depending upon the tone used. Detractors maintain he was nothing without a rehearsed speech, an actor whose strings were being pulled by the minions around him. His Firing Line appearances argue well against this characterization. RR comes off as informed, thoughtful, logical, and seems to think on his feet pretty darn well. While WFB was admittedly a fan of Reagan's, this is not Tiger Beat. These men are having deep discussions of relevant issues of the time. I highly recommend this DVD, as well as the Firing Line debate on the Panama Canal Treaty, featuring WFB against Reagan. The supporting cast features George Will, Pat Buchanan, Admiral John McCain Sr., and a couple of other gentlemen whose names escape me. WFB is always interesting, and it can be fun just to watch him think. He truly seemed to enjoy Firing Line, It's a shame we don't have anything comparable today.