William Kristol Speaks to Capacity Crowd

On February 21, William Kristol gave an insider's view of 2008 presidential politics and the volatile environment shaping it to a full auditorium of students, faculty, and members of the public at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics.
 
Kristol is editor of The Weekly Standard , as well as chairman and co-founder of the Project for the New American Century. One of the nation's leading political analysts and commentators, Kristol regularly appears on Fox News Channel and was at the college in January 2004 when Fox covered the New Hampshire Presidential Primary from the Quad.
 
Paul Manuel, professor and chair of the Politics Department, and Rachel Bourassa, a senior politics major, introduced Kristol, whose speech ended a day spent with students and faculty. Kristol spoke with insight, wit, and humor about the American political scene.

Describing the unsettled state of politics today, Kristol focused on three key dates: September 11, 2001, November 2004, and November 2008. He said that the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington ushered in a tumultuous, new historical epoch, marked by instability and unpredictability that will continue for years.

"Things changed, more than we expected them to and more drastically than we thought," Kristol said. We are in a new era, and "the biggest mistake to make in a new era is for people to think that we will go back to the way it was before."

International uncertainties, including Iran's nuclear ambitions, China's economic power, tensions between Islam and the West, and the possibility of another terrorist attack, also will help to shape future elections in ways that are impossible to predict.  Additionally, there are many unanswered domestic questions.

In November 2004, for instance, voters handed Republicans both the White House and a full majority in Congress for the first time since 1952. Kristol cautioned that whether the congressional majority survives the 2006 elections will depend on at least two domestic wild cards: the success of the new federal prescription drug benefits plan and the possibility of another Supreme Court vacancy.

In the 2008 presidential campaign, for the first time in 58 years, no incumbent president or vice president will be running. Each party will produce six or seven plausible candidates, rather than a single frontrunner. "In wide open races with many candidates, a candidate's skills matter most. How they do on stump speeches and in debates will be important," Kristol said.

Following NHIOP tradition, Kristol took extensive questions from the audience. Daryl Marma '07, a liberal studies major, asked Kristol if he believed New Hampshire is still the right state for the nation's first presidential primary.

"New Hampshire has served the country well," Kristol responded, noting that the state's tradition of informed political engagement helps to whittle the field of candidates. "Politicians like the challenge of New Hampshire."

—Bridget Luddy '07