Syndicated columnist Pat Buchanan had a rather shocking observation about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s comments about American exceptionalism in his New York Times op-ed last week.
Appearing on PBS’s McLaughlin Group Friday, Buchanan said, “He’s not only appealing to the people of the world. He’s appealing to that half of the United States to whom Barack Obama himself was appealing.”
JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, HOST: Question: why did President Putin seize on the stated U.S. value of exceptionalism, Pat Buchanan?
PAT BUCHANAN: John, from the hysterical reaction in this city to Putin’s op-ed piece he put this one right down the smokestack. What he did is he keyed off of what Obama said on exceptionalism and he countered it with an argument which people all over the world believe. They are sick of hearing Americans talk about “We are the indispensable nation” as Madeleine Albright said. “We see further than ours, that’s why we can use force. We’re the sheriff of the world. We are first. We are leaders.”
He’s not only appealing to the people of the world. He’s appealing to that half of the United States to whom Barack Obama himself was appealing. So I think he hit home.
