The year 2025 marks the centenary of modern conservativism’s founder, William F. Buckley Jr. But given the takeover of the Republican Party by Donald Trump, whether conservative still means what it once did is an open question. In these times it’s natural to ask: What would Bill have to say?
The question is the flip side of the related allegation – deployed in conservative circles by those confused, troubled, or even irate over the Trump ascendancy – which begins: “If Bill Buckley were alive today he’d …”
He’d … what? Be bothered? Upset about Trump’s, impact on the movement in its current state? Allied with those who see the Buckley legacy as one that prioritizes civility?
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