Free Republic

Eliminate Primary Elections The best way to greatly reduce the influence of big money in American politics is to eliminate the primary elections. Choosing nominees in primary elections was invented as a reform to get away from those famous "smoke-filled backrooms." That was a reference to the old political machines, which were active in most large American cities. They often played a major role in choosing nominees. As often happens with reforms, the reform has produced a greater problem than the one it was intended to solve. It's true that money is the mother's milk of politics, but it is...

It was shocking news that Patrick J. Buchanan, Ronald Reagan's communications director, is getting $500,000 to write a Bush-bashing book to be titled, "Where the Right Went Wrong." The New York Post quoted a publishing insider as saying, "They could put Michael Moore on the jacket of this book, and people would believe he wrote it." But the Post story also said the book "is scheduled to go on sale in early August, to coincide with the start of the Republican National Convention – at which Buchanan will be a commentator for MSNBC." With the exception of Joe Scarborough's show,...