Wead Helps Keep the Faith in Politics

0 Comments | Insight on the News, May 14, 2001 | by Doug Burton

I gave the same basic speech as in 1976 at the Washington Charity Awards Dinner in 1980, and Jack Kemp was sitting next to me at the head table. He asked about the concept, and I gave him my pitch, describing myself as a bleeding-heart conservative, and he picked up on the language. To my knowledge, he was the first public figure to do so.

Insight: How did George W. react to this approach when he was your boss back in 19887

DW: Well, make no mistake, George W Bush is the father of his own version of compassionate conservatism. No one has a lock on those words, but obviously he agreed with the idea and has put it over in a compelling way. Some on the left think being a compassionate conservative means we are less conservative and allege hypocrisy if conservatives don't give in to them on every social issue. But, actually, it speaks to what motivates our program and philosophy: It tells why we are conservative, not why we are compassionate.

Personal Bio

Doug Wead: All smiles with dad in Muncie, Ind., 1946.

Currently: Motivational speaker, author and political consultant; president of the board of Canyonville Academy in Canyonville, Ore.

Personal: Born, Muncie, Ind., May 17, 1946. Wife, Miriam. Children: Shannon, Scott, Joshua, Chloe and Camille. Ordained minister. Evangelical.

Education: Canyonville Academy; two years' study at Central Bible College, Springfield, Mo.

Career: Author of 34 books, including Reagan: In Pursuit of the Presidency (1980): George Bush: Man of Integrity (1988); The Iran Crisis (1979); The Compassionate Touch (1974); The Out-of-town Expert with a Briefcase (2000); and Street-smarts (2001).

Presidents most admired: George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush; Ronald Reagan: and George Washingqon, "because he walked away from it when he was in the limelight -- that's pretty hard to do."

Favorite writers: John Le Carre, James Clavell, Shelby Foote and Stephen Ambrose.