The Woodrow Wilson you never knew

Pittsburgh Tribune Review ^ | Sunday, January 2, 2011 | Paul Kengor

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On the heels of a recent Sunday magazine profile of Glenn Beck, The New York Times published a roundtable discussion among six scholars on the issue of President Woodrow Wilson. Wilson has become a popular Beck target and has suddenly emerged as a hot topic in our current politics.

"I hate Woodrow Wilson!" shouted Beck at February's Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington.

For the record, I was at that gathering, and I'm a conservative, I like Beck and I don't hate Wilson. My take on Wilson, however, is very different from what I'm hearing from Beck or from scholars on the left or right, whether pro-Wilson or anti-Wilson.

It relates to a crucial aspect of Wilson that needs to be better known and that, dare I say, might even prompt Beck to amend his view -- slightly, perhaps.

First, let me say that I agree with several important criticisms of Wilson. His views on race and segregation were deeply offensive. His wielding of state power was often repressive, even abusive, particularly during wartime.

And the long progression of a seemingly nonstop, ever-increasing centralization of policy and programs in Washington arguably began under Wilson.

Yet, one critical component of Wilson is missed by both sides, which conservatives should like and liberals might not: Wilson was stridently, vocally anti-communist. He staunchly opposed Bolshevism in particular.

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Good comments X, and I agree.

So anywhere you put him on the political spectrum is bound to be an oversimplification.

It is always tempting to attempt to peg people from long ago like Wilson or TR somewhere on our current political spectrum. But it really does not work.

Of Wilson, my humble opinion of him is that he was the Jimmy Carter of his day. As stated by another Freeper in an earlier post, Wilson always considered himself the smartest and best intentioned guy in any room he was ever in. He had an arrogance about him, and the old hard core 'real politics' guys at the Versailles conference after realizing the large ego the man had, proceeded to eat his lunch and have their way with him all the while making him think he was leading them.

Like Carter, he was a babe in the woods full of lions, tiger and bears.

God save us from fools like him.

As a side conversation, what is your thoughts on the US even entering WWI?

I tend to think we should have never played that game at all, and left Europe to its fate. Considering the disaster that 'peace' brought about a generation later when we really had no good choices, it would have probably been better to allow them all to wear themselves out and settle it rather than any of the corrupt bastards being able to claim victory or be embittered by defeat.