Buchanan: ‘Kristol Is Making Himself Look Ridiculous’

On this weekend’s broadcast of “The McLaughlin Group,” conservative commentator Pat Buchanan weighed in on Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol’s possible third-party “Never Trump” candidate National Review contributor David French.

Buchanan and the rest of “The McLaughlin Group” panelists dismissed the possibility of French as a serious candidate, with Buchanan adding Kristol was making himself “look ridiculous.”

Partial transcript as follows:

MCLAUGHLIN: Who is David French and what impact will his candidacy have?

BUCHANAN: He’s Bill Kristol’s candidate and national review I think and “The Weekly Standard”. He’s a very nice fellow. He’s a writer for “The National Review”. Nobody knows who he is. I don’t know that he’s fully committed himself to do this.

CLIFT: No.

BUCHANAN: And Kristol is making himself look ridiculous.

(CROSSTALK)

CLIFT: It was a big nothing burger after a lot of tweets about he was going to produce this super credible candidate.

ROGAN: Yes.

BUCHANAN: Well, I mean —

MCLAUGHLIN: You know what the movement is?

ROGAN: Never Trump.

MCLAUGHLIN: Never Trump. How did you know that?

BUCHANAN: He didn’t start it. He joined it. I mean, French joined it. He didn’t start it.

ROGAN: No, but he’s —

MCLAUGHLIN: I’m talking Bill Kristol.

BUCHANAN: How did that work out?

(LAUGHTER)

CLIFT: Not very well.

PAGE: That’s the problem. I mean, French is a very attractive candidate, except nobody knows who he is.

(CROSSTALK)

BUCHANAN: He’s a good candidate for Congress, but for president of the United States?

ROGAN: And that might be what it is, Tennessee, right? That you might consider —

MCLAUGHLIN: Will he draw about as many as the Green Party. The Green Party?

CLIFT: No, first —

PAGE: Green Party is better known than he is. I mean —

(CROSSTALK)

CLIFT: They’re not on the ballot anywhere.

BUCHANAN: No, and all these deadlines are passing.

CLIFT: Exactly.

BUCHANAN: You can’t get on in Texas. You only needed about 100,000 signatures.

CLIFT: Or Illinois. He can’t get on Illinois.

ROGAN: Look, he’s a very decent man, a combat veteran. But I think it will ultimately, I think Gary Johnson will have much more of formative impact on the outcome of the race.

CLIFT: If Gary Johnson were a combat veteran, he’d be Kristol’s choice. I mean, Kristol really wants the military component.

ROGAN: That’s —

PAGE: Besides that, not having — but being on the ballot on all 50 states is a big plus for the Libertarians.

As you know, Pat, it’s very hard to get on the ballot in any of these states.

BUCHANAN: It sure is.

PAGE: There’s very little time left.

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