Patrick Buchanan

Patrick ("Pat") Buchanan is a political figure in the U.S., from the paleoconservative wing of American conservatism. He campaigned twice for the U.S. Republican Party presidential nomination, and was the U.S. Reform Party candidate in 2000. He is now a columnist in many outlets, a political analyst for MSNBC, chairman of The American Cause Foundation and an editor of The American Conservative.

Educated as a journalist, he became Richard Nixon's first full-time assistant in the 1966 campaign. He served in the Nixon White House from 1966 to 1974, and was Ronald Reagan's director of communications, 1985-1987. He was Reagan's main speechwriter and attended four summits, including Mr. Nixon’s historic opening to China in 1972, and Ronald Reagan’s Reykjavik summit in 1986 with Mikhail Gorbachev.

Leaving the White House, he challeged President George H. W. Bush in the Republican primaries, winning in New Hampshire. After 1974, he returned to journalism and occasional politics, including the first of the panel shows featuring heated argument: NBC’s The McLaughlin Group, and CNN’s Capital Gang and Crossfire.

Education

Master's degree in journalism, Columbia University