Last evening, C-SPAN broadcast a debate in England that was held earlier this month. Patrick Buchanan was one of three individuals (along with Nigel Knight and Norman Stone) who argued for the proposition that Winston Churchill was “more of a liability than an asset to the free world.” According to press accounts, of the 1,800 people who attended, only 181 joined Buchanan in supporting that proposition.

Those opposing the proposition were the distinguished historians Antony Beevor, Richard Overy, and Andrew Roberts. Roberts said the debate was an overwhelming success, adding: “You have to be 76 years old to have voted for Winston Churchill in a general election. This was a very special night which enabled a lot of people who previously couldn’t to vote for Churchill.” Professor Beevor, a leading military historian, said, “I never expected to hear Pat Buchanan backing up Vladimir Putin’s idea that somehow the Brits were responsible for World War Two. Pat Buchanan’s arguments during the debate were quite bizarre. At times people didn’t know whether he was sympathising with Hitler or just being anti-British.” Professor Overy, who has published extensively on the history of World War II, added this: “I thought what Pat Buchanan said was a load of historical nonsense that was all completely out of context.”

What a long, strange journey it’s been for Pat Buchanan, in so many respects. It’s been a sad and, at times, ugly thing to witness.