The National Review Institute, a non-profit organization founded by Wm. F. Buckley Jr. in 1991, decided to let the Clintons know that while Washington is now their town, it is still the capital of our nation. Accordingly, the Institute organized a Conservative Summit at Washington’s Mayflower Hotel January 23-24. We can give only a taste of that conference here: it featured 78 speakers on more than a dozen panels, as well as rich conversation at meals, in the halls, and after hours. We will be printing George Will’s speech in a future issue, as well as a tabulation of the audience’s responses to a survey; in addition, we hope to make tapes of the event available.
For now, Tom Bethell flexes his considerable “I am a camera” skills in his report on the conference. . . . Richard Brookhiser picks up on Mr. Bethell’s closing thought by viewing the weekend through the lens of presidential politics; I must add that this crowd saw plenty of missions to be accomplished before we worry about final leadership auditions. . . . In the section headed Speeches & Panels we give as many excerpts as space will allow; far fewer than the panelists deserve. . . . Pete duPont, in his role as a senior sage of the movement, closes with a question, and some tentative answers that raise more questions, about how conservatives must go about renewing the nation. —MC
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