05/24/2016
VDARE.com editor Peter Brimelow spoke at the American Renaissance Conferences. There will be video and a transcript of the speech later, but hereâs the conference report from Amren.com:
Peter Brimelow, editor of VDARE.com, is one of the rare outsiders who predicted that Donald Trump would run for the presidency. âI had posted, saying he would run,â he said, âthough I didnât really believe it.â In like manner, at the 2015 American Renaissance conference, he talked about how a single speech can set the tone for an era. Examples would be Joseph McCarthyâs 1950 speech on Communists in the State Department and Enoch Powellâs âRivers of Bloodâ speech in 1968. Mr. Trumpâs June 16 announcement of his candidacy has likewise upended the political establishment. âOne spark can start the conflagration,â he said. âIt can be one spark or one politician.âAs someone who has long promoted patriotic immigration reformââthe other kind is just another word for amnestyââMr. Brimelow echoed Ann Coulterâs opinion of Mr. Trumpâs official position on immigration: âThe greatest political document since the Magna Carta.â His policies respond to a deep yearning; at Trump rallies, audiences spontaneously start chanting âBuild the wall, build the wall.â
Mr. Brimelow raised three questions about a Trump candidacy. First, can he win? Mr. Trump has been catching up with Mrs. Clinton in the polls, and he seems to be doing better than Mitt Romney with non-whites. Mr. Brimelow predicted that âif he can mobilize whites in a nation-wide âSouthern strategyâ he could win by a landslide.â
Second, can he be trusted if he wins? âAbsolutely not,â said Mr. Brimelow. âNo politician can be trusted.â The important difference is that we know exactly what the other candidates would do, whereas there is at least some uncertainty with Trump. âHe doesnât seem drawn to the quiet life,â said Mr. Brimelow, âand facing down the beltway establishment is a sure-fire way to avoid the quiet life.â
Mr. Brimelow noted that the presidency is actually a much weaker office than that of the British prime minister, for example. President Trump could be like King Kong in the movie, tied down with hundreds of ropes and roaring. Still, much could be accomplished by thumping the bully pulpit and through âstrategic deportations:â Whenever illegals âcome out of the shadowsâ and demonstrate brazenly, the government could âround âem up and ship âem out.â
Third, what happens if Mr. Trump loses? âHillary has made it very clear that anyone who gets in can stay,â said Mr. Brimelow, and âshe could unleash an Angela-Merkel style tidal wave of immigrants, because she wants to deliver the death blow in the struggle for the future of America.â
âLast year,â said Mr. Brimelow, âI said it would take one speech. Now, I say it will take one election to make Mount America blow.â [AmRen 2016: The Wind is in Our Sails, AR Staff, American Renaissance, May 23, 2016]