Overview for David Frum in Print

Ohio: The Many Faces Of The Kingmaker State

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Ohio is George Bush's make-or-break state. No Republican has won the presidency without winning Ohio -- ever. Knowing that history, John F. Kerry has invested unprecedented time and money to win this crucial state. It was here that Senator Kerry came to deliver his midnight …

Written by David Frum on Tuesday September 14, 2004

Vietnam Won't Save John Kerry

George Bush has emerged from the New York convention with a 10 or 11 point lead over John Kerry, depending who is counting. Democrats can reassure themselves that there are still nearly two months to go in this election. But given how badly Kerry has used the nearly seven months since he locked up …

Written by David Frum on Tuesday September 7, 2004

Notes Of Thanks

Tonight, at the Republican National Convention in New York, George W. Bush will step onto the podium and accept his party's nomination for president. Though conventions themselves have receded in importance, the acceptance speech has remained potent, offering the candidate -- even one who has been …

Written by David Frum on Thursday September 2, 2004

Easy Rider

Review of Bill Clinton's "My Life" Reviewers have almost unanimously dismissed Bill ClintonÕs mammoth book of memoirs as boring. It is easy to see why: much of it is an undigested mass of diary entries, apparently re-dictated without thought or reflection. Old speeches seem to have been pasted in …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday September 1, 2004

For Gop, Glimmers Of Hope

NEW YORK - The Republicans arrive in New York in an anxious mood, and no wonder. It has been 20 years since a Republican president won re-election. Back in 1984, it was "morning in America": The economy was rocketing toward prosperity, new technologies like the personal computer were remaking …

Written by David Frum on Monday August 30, 2004

Pro-choice - But Still The Best Choice

While the Democrats enforced party-line conformity at their convention in Boston, Republicans will display an impressive show of party diversity in New York. A conservative president from Texas will share the stage with the liberal Republican governors of California and New York--and also with the …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday August 25, 2004

The Ad That Worked

The people who keep track of these things expect 2004 to be the first billion-dollar election in American history. Yet the single most effective ad campaign of the election cycle has thus far cost only about $500,000: the campaign launched at the beginning of this month by the new anti-Kerry group, …

Written by David Frum on Tuesday August 24, 2004

The Simple Goodness Of The Ontario 'terroir'

Fourteen years ago my in-laws bought a summer place outside of Toronto. Most Torontonians who make that decision head north, toward the primeval rocks and black water of Muskoka and Haliburton. But my mother-in-law craved sunshine and open views. Instead of the classic Canadian cottage on a hidden …

Written by David Frum on Tuesday August 17, 2004

The 'two Americas' Canard

Together, John Kerry and John Edwards possess family fortunes totaling probably in the vicinity of $1 billion. If elected, John Kerry would be the richest president in American history, richer even than his hero John F. Kennedy. And unlike other rich men to seek the presidency -- Ross Perot, …

Written by David Frum on Monday August 9, 2004

United In Rage Only

Written by David Frum on Wednesday July 28, 2004

Waking Up To The Iranian Threat

What's a Canadian's life worth? Eighteen thousand dollars says the government of Iran. That is the compensation that an Iranian court proposed to pay the family of murdered photographer Zahra Kazemi -- after that same court refused to hold any individual responsible for Kazemi's death. What …

Written by David Frum on Tuesday July 27, 2004

What Went Wrong For The Tories?

It's good to be back at the old fruit stand. A lot of history has passed since I last had a regular spot on these pages, and not all of it has been happy. I'd been rather looking forward to a plush patronage appointment from a Harper government, perhaps as equerry to Canada's new ambassador to the …

Written by David Frum on Tuesday July 20, 2004

The Indispensable Nation

Review of "Colossus" by Niall Ferguson What are we going to do with Niall Ferguson? Ferguson is a brilliant young Scot now emerging as one of the English-speaking world's leading popular historians. Educated at Oxford, now transplanted to Harvard, he is also--incredibly enough--a thinker of …

Written by David Frum on Monday June 14, 2004

Out With The New Iraq, In With The Old

In his speech Monday night, George W. Bush proved he's still a risk-taker. The U.S. President is betting on the hope that the United Nations can help stabilize Iraq. Specifically, he believes UN special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi can assemble a representative and effective government, and that - the …

Written by David Frum on Thursday May 27, 2004

Un Should Change - Or Us Should Quit

The United Nations is the tooth fairy of American politics: Few adults believe in it, but it's generally regarded as a harmless story to amuse the children. Since 9/11, however, the U.N. has ceased to be harmless, and the Democratic presidential candidates' enthusiasm for it has ceased to be …

Written by David Frum on Friday January 23, 2004

The Big Test For The Democratic Contenders

The results of the Iowa caucuses are being hailed as a victory for the tough-minded wing of the Democratic Party. But how tough really are the Iowa winners? Senators John Kerry and John Edwards, the top two finishers, may have shunned the wild rhetoric of Howard Dean. But they share their party's …

Written by David Frum on Wednesday January 21, 2004

Beware The Soft-line Ideololgues

Under the leadership of President Bush, two approaches to American foreign and security policy have emerged. One approach is founded on vigorous, decisive action, including a readiness to use military power, against the terrorist enemy. Its exponents are the hard-liners. You know the names: Cheney, …

Written by David Frum on Sunday January 11, 2004

I Know Bush. He's Your Best Chance For Peace

For a visiting North American, there was something terribly sad about London last week. Everything had been prepared for a glorious celebration of Anglo-American friendship. The flags had been massed, the backdrop was beautiful - but the stage was empty. I felt that I had wandered into Miss Havisha…

Written by David Frum on Sunday November 23, 2003

Protests Are All About Britain, Not Bush

DATELINE: LONDON So what did President Bush make of it all? A presidential visit is a whirl of scattered impressions seen from the back of a limousine -- and intense hours of conversation in formal rooms: a snatch of bunting on the Mall and planning sessions with Prime Minister Tony Blair; an …

Written by David Frum on Saturday November 22, 2003

Why Won't You Listen When We Say What You Want To Hear?

Yesterday, at the Banqueting Hall -- the same building in which the Religious Right of the 17th century struck history's first blow against the divine right of kings by cutting off the head of Charles I - President George W Bush delivered a grim warning to the tyrants of the Middle East. …

Written by David Frum on Thursday November 20, 2003