“The Goldwater Myth”

Recently I highlighted a quote (among several) from “moderate” Republican State Representative Mark Larson about his disgust with the party’s social conservatives, claiming for himself the mantel of a “Goldwater Republican.” Today there’s an excellent Opinion Journal article by Andrew Busch, professor of government at Claremont McKenna College, documenting “The Goldwater Myth” that the Arizona Senator’s 1964 Presidential campaign was more about libertarian small government principles than moral and cultural conservatism. It seems to be not an uncommon mistake to make this false characterization and therefore a must-read for those who otherwise conveniently and passively might have let recent American political history be rewritten for whatever purposes.