Alan Keyes

Monday, May 13, 2002

By Patricia Sheridan, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

A GOP presidential candidate and ambassador to the United Nations Economic and Social Council under President Reagan, Alan Keyes is now the host of "Alan Keyes Is Making Sense," a talk show on MSNBC. He will be guest of honor at the 20th Bishop's Annual Dinner for Catholic Charities at the Pittsburgh Hilton and Towers on Friday. Tickets: 412-456-6969; or http://www.ccpgh.org/.

Q. Why do black Republicans seem so scarce?

A. Well I'm not sure. Partly I do think that's a question of perception created by the media. There once was a sense of loyalty to the Republican Party, because the Republican Party was the party of Lincoln, the party of emancipation, the party that had fought for an end of slavery. The decisive shift occurred during the civil rights movement, when the perception was somehow or another that the civil rights movement advancements came under Demo-cratic leadership. That, of course, is wrong. The civil rights measures would not have succeeded had they not had strong support from the Republican side.

Q. What about the Catholic Church crisis?

A. I think it is a process that in some ways will be difficult. Because obviously one of the first things that has to be done is that folks who have been responsible for the crisis of confidence have to look themselves in the mirror and acknowledge that they are the problem and they have to deal with it. That's a little hard in coming in the Catholic Church, where folks have identified this as a problem of priestly misbehavior. The perceptions that the authority of the church was compromised in an effort to cover up these misdeeds has, I think, done the greatest harm. And it is not clear to me that the archbishops and cardinals realize that they are the source of the greatest problem when it comes to confidence in the institution.

Q. Racial profiling?

A. Frankly it depends on what you mean. I think we have to make a distinction here. If we have people out there who are acting from bigotry and who are going after people on the basis of racial or ethnic or religious prejudice, then that should be stopped. On the other hand, if we are going to look at policeman and say we are going to write a law that forbids you to notice that this group or that group is more heavily involved in crime, then that's insane and stupid. In that respect we have to apply our common sense and not get carried away with a lot of rhetoric.

Q. What is your opinion of Warren Buffett's view of an inevitable nuclear attack on the U.S.?

A. I think he is saying what all our public officials have been saying. I haven't noticed anybody in the government from the president on down who hasn't looked the American people in the eye in the last few months and prepared them for the likely eventuality of another devastating terrorist attack. So I think Americans need to wake up. I have noticed some people slipping back into complacency. This is silly. This is wrong. This thing has just begun and it is not over. We must stay alert and do what is necessary to reduce the risk.

Q. What do you think of the commercials that show the American flag flying with the Saudi Arabian flag?

A. I have been pretty open on my program in questioning that. Here again we need to apply our common sense. We need to see the Saudi money and the Saudi people and Saudi encouragement of religious extremism have, if not directly committed these acts of terrorism, been deeply implicated in the infrastructure of terrorism. After all, when the World Trade Center fell, the hijackers who were in those planes, most of them were carrying Saudi passports -- they were led by an individual from Saudi Arabia. I think we have to be very wary of the Saudis and not go along with this idea that they are indisputable buddies until it's proven that they are.

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