If the campaign of 1976 confirmed the status of Ronald Reagan as maximum chief of American conservatives, it also brought forth a number of other impressive spokesmen for the conservative cause.
Foremost among these were Senator Jesse Helms of North Carolina and Representative Philip Crane of Illinois, two of the handful of Republican officials who dared incur the wrath of an incumbent President of their own party. By their efforts as Reagan chairmen in their respective states, and as Reagan advocates in the party primaries, Helms and Crane have more than earned their chevrons as conservative leaders. It is thus appropriate that both have recently published books expounding their political philosophies, and that each has provided a trenchant volume well worth reading.
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