It's hard to remain upset with conservative U.S. commentator Pat Buchanan. He tries so hard to make a dent in that country's presidential race, and limps away with so little to show for it. He joins the Microsoft-NBC cable-television channel MSNBC, billed as "America's NewsChannel," but finds his talk show Buchanan and Press trailing so low in the ratings it's a wonder he and Bill Press don't get the bends.
Every once in a while he notices Canada and growls at it. In 1990, he said that if Canada splintered because of the collapse of the Meech Lake accord, "America would pick up the pieces." Two days ago, when Canada asked the United States not to target Canadian citizens just because they were born in certain countries, Mr. Buchanan griped to Mr. Press that Americans didn't need a lecture "from Soviet Canuckistan."
So what if Ottawa's argument was persuasive enough to win over the U.S. government? Mr. Buchanan was on a roll, trotting out his complaints that Canada relies on Washington for defence and "is a complete haven for international terrorists," conveniently forgetting that the Sept. 11 hijackers didn't make their home on this side of the border.
But that's Mr. Buchanan's way, and we don't mind giving his views an audience. Heaven knows he could use one.