by Patrick J. Buchanan – January 8, 1996

These columns were quick to praise Bob Dole for assisting President Clinton on Bosnia, an act of bipartisanship in the national interest. But Mr. Dole’s assist to the president last week on the budget makes us wonder all over again how committed Mr. Dole really is to changing the Beltway status quo.

For a year now, Mr. Dole has attached himself to Newt Gingrich and the House Republican agenda like a surfer riding a wave. That positioning has helped his presidential prospects, blunting doubts among many Republicans about his long tenure inside the Beltway and his many tax-raising episodes in the past. Yet when push really came to shove last week, Mr. Dole joined Bill Clinton in blaming House Republicans for shutting down the government.