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July 20, 2000--The
Federal Election Commission having failed to act on the debates complaint
he filed back in March, Pat Buchanan announces he is taking the matter
to court. He said that to exclude him would be "discriminatory, outrageous
and wrong." Buchanan's suit charges the FEC is failing to enforce
regulations that govern the Commission on Presidential Debates; specifically,
the suit argues the CPD is not non-partisan but bipartisan and that it
is not using "pre-established objective criteria" but rather an arbitrary
fifteen percent threshhold. Buchanan also spoke to the status of
his campaign, stating that his objectives have been to get the nomination,
secure the $12.5 million that goes to the nominee, and gain ballot access
in the 50 states. He said he will run an intense campaign from Aug.
15 to Sept. 20, and particularly after Labor Day. "Timing is everything,"
Buchanan said. He said he has been down in his basement working on
speeches and has five or six of them lined up and ready to go, but that
the media would not pay attention if he delivered them now. He is
also planning bus tours. |
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July 16, 2000--After
an appearance on CBS's "Face the Nation" it's off to CNN. Mr. Buchanan
expressed confidence that he will secure the Reform Party nomination despite
the challenge from John Hagelin. |
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April 12, 2000--Pat
Buchanan waits to speak at the Teamsters' rally against Permanent Normal
Trade Relations (PNTR) with China. Thousands of Teamsters gathered
in the area across from Teamsters headquarters, near the Capitol and
listened to speakers including Harry Wu, a number of congressmen, and Buchanan. |
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March 20, 2000--Pat
Buchanan announces he is filing a complaint with the Federal Election Commission
against the Commission on Presidential Debates. The complaint charged
the CPD is "receiving and making illegal corporate contributions" and stated
that its threshhold level of 15% required for participation in the debates
has "no rational basis and is purely subjective." Instead, according
to the complaint, the debates should include candidates who qualify for
public funding in the general election. |
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Nov. 12, 1999--Pat Buchanan
receives the endorsement of Dr. Lenora Fulani, who heads a significant
faction in the Reform Party. Fulani, a controversial figure on the
left, acknowledged Buchanan has had "little connection to black America,
to American progressivism" but said his candidacy "offers the black community
the opportunity to join in new alliances." Fulani stated, "We are
going to integrate that peasant army of his. We are going to bring
black folks, Latino folks, gay folks and liberal folks into that army."
She said, "I'm going to take Pat Buchanan to 125th Street in Harlem.
We are going to have lunch at Sylvia's. I am going to take him to
speak at Reverend Sharpton's National Action Network." Accepting
Fulani's endorsement, Buchanan joked, "Welcome aboard. Your pitchfork has
been assigned." |
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Nov. 12, 1999--Pat
Buchanan said Fulani's endorsement "opens a new page in this campaign and
it sends a new message. And that is that this coalition is open to
all..." "I think that this campaign is going to be a voice for the
voiceless, and its objective is to give power to the powerless in America,"
Buchanan said. He stated that, "[T]he great goal of social justice
is not being served in America today by this economy and the way it is
functioning." "[T]he disparities in income in this country are becoming
too great. They're becoming too outrageous, and that is not healthy,"
Buchanan said. |
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Oct. 25, 1999--West
Falls Church, VA. A balky sound system did not stop Pat Buchanan
from leaving the Republican Party and joining the Reform Party. "Our
two parties have become nothing but two wings of the same bird of prey.
On foreign and trade policy, open borders and centralized power, our Beltway
parties have become identical twins," Buchanan declared. Describing
today's politics as "poisoned with rancor and hostility," Buchanan said
that, "America needs a government of national unity and reconciliation
that draws from the best of all parties." "I promise you: I will
create that kind of government," he vowed. "And if we lead, they
will follow, and if we build it, they will come," he said. [full
speech]. |
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Sept. 12, 1999--Still
a Republican, but for how long? Pat Buchanan talks with reporters
after an appearance on NBC's "Meet the Press." Buchanan told host
Tim Russert that he could not commit to endorsing the Republican nominee.
"I believe my party at the national level has become a Xerox copy, basically
of the Democratic Party," Buchanan said. He said he would make a
decision about leaving the Republican race and seeking the Reform Party
nomination by October 15. |
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June 1, 1999--Speaking
to the National Press Club, Pat Buchanan sought to define the campaign
as a contest between the "Establishment candidates"--Bush, McCain, Dole
and Forbes--and himself. Specifically Buchanan noted that the four
had endorsed Clinton's war on Serbia ("I am unalterably opposed."), they
support MFN for China, and they supported NAFTA, GATT, fast track trading
authority, and U.S. entry into the World Trade Organization. On these
and other issues, Buchanan declared, "Bush, Dole, McCain and Forbes are
virtually xerox copies of Clinton and Gore." |
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May 30, 1999--Pat
Buchanan spoke at Rolling Thunder 12 on a very warm Sunday afternoon.
Rolling Thunder, which began in 1988, seeks to draw attention to the POW/MIA
issue. Tens of thousands of bikers from around the country proceeded
from the Pentagon to the Vietnam Memorial, where some of them listened
to music and speeches. |
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March 15,
1999--Pat Buchanan talks with reporters after appearing on NBC's "Meet
the Press." The Wasington Post's David Broder joined host
Tim Russert in questioning Buchanan for an ongoing "Meet the Contenders"
series. Discussion started on the hot topic of the day, China and
espionage. On abortion, Buchanan reaffirmed his commitment to the
Republican Party but said he would leave if it ever ceased to be a pro-life
party. On immigration, Buchanan called for a moratorium or time out
on legal immigration. On trade, he proposed a three-month moratorium
on all steel imports and the introduction of a "very low recipricol tariff"
on goods from Europe and Japan. Of his own appeal, Buchanan said,
"I can bring home the voters of Wierton, West Virginia." "I don't
know whether we can win the Jesse Jackson Democrats, but we can win back
the Jesse Ventura Democrats," he said. |
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March 15, 1999--Pat
Buchanan leaves NBC studios with an aide after doing "Meet the Press." |
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April 8, 1998--Pat
Buchanan greets an admirer while signing copies of his book The Great
Betrayal, which examines U.S. trade policy, at Crown Books in McLean,
Virginia. A long line of supporters and fans lined up to get Buchanan's
signature and exchange a few words. Asked about the possibility of another
presidential run, Buchanan said, "We'll see." |