Ann Coulter explains how William F. Buckley was the original Ann Coulter. What she actually says is that he was the original “enfant terrible”, but it’s not hard to get her point.
She explains the reception Buckley got with his first book:
Buckley’s first book, “God and Man at Yale,” was met with the usual thoughtful critiques of anyone who challenges the liberal establishment. Frank Ashburn wrote in the Saturday Review: “The book is one which has the glow and appeal of a fiery cross on a hillside at night. There will undoubtedly be robed figures who gather to it, but the hoods will not be academic. They will cover the face.”
And she reminds us of Buckley’s style:
In a famous exchange with Gore Vidal in 1968, Vidal said to Buckley: “As far as I am concerned, the only crypto Nazi I can think of is yourself.”
Buckley replied: “Now listen, you queer. Stop calling me a crypto Nazi, or I’ll sock you in your goddamn face and you’ll stay plastered.”
But will Ann Coulter someday get the same eulogies that Buckley is now getting?