Firing Line with Margaret Hoover Assessing William F. Buckley Jr.’s legacy with biographer Sam Tanenhaus
Dec 6, 2025
Sam Tanenhaus, a biographer known for his work on William F. Buckley Jr., dives deep into Buckley's life and influence on modern conservatism. He elaborates on Buckley’s shift in political landscape from elite conservatism to the MAGA movement. Tanenhaus discusses Buckley’s complex views on race, his debates against figures like James Baldwin, and how he managed extremism within conservatism. The conversation also touches on Buckley’s legacy, including the ideological threads connecting him to contemporary politics.
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Architect Of Modern Conservatism
- William F. Buckley Jr. was the architect of the modern conservative movement and a dominant public intellectual for about 50 years.
- He combined showmanship, erudition, and debate to become perhaps the most famous intellectual in America during that span.
Shifted The Conservative Power Map
- Buckley shifted conservative power away from East Coast media elites toward the Sun Belt and new political centers.
- That geographic and cultural shift reshaped Republican politics from Goldwater to Reagan and the Bushes.
Devout But Not Theological
- Sam Tanenhaus describes Buckley as a conservative Catholic who knew little theology and relied on others for doctrinal guidance.
- He was devout in practice but not a theological scholar shaping policy from dogma.
