Scope and Content Note
The papers of William Allen Rusher (1923-2011) span the years 1940-2010, with the bulk of the material concentrated in the period 1968-2009. The collection documents the instrumental role Rusher played in the development of the conservative movement from its origins in the 1950s. Nearly four decades of service to the conservative cause are highlighted by the papers, including Rusher's participation in key organizations and political campaigns, his writings and lectures, and his work as publisher of the first significant national journal of modern conservatism, the National Review. The papers are arranged into the following series: Diaries, General Correspondence, National Review file, Subject File, Speeches and Writings, Microfilm File , and 2016 Addition .
The greatest concentration of material in the collection is found in the General Correspondence series (1957-1989). Comprising the bulk of the file are letters between Rusher and the general public, subscribers to the National Review, and family and friends. Although the majority of the correspondence is of a routine nature, dispersed throughout the file are letters in which Rusher articulated and defended the principles of the conservative movement, thereby providing a rich source of information on conservative ideology and tactics.
Of special interest is correspondence between Rusher and his associates, including government officials, members of various conservative groups and organizations, political activists, Hollywood actors, and journalists and writers. Correspondents include Spiro T. Agnew, John M. Ashbrook, Robert E. Bauman, Morton C. Blackwell, Patrick J. Buchanan, James L. Buckley, James Burnham, Roy Cohn, M. Stanton Evans, Barry M. Goldwater, Charlton Heston, Donald Hodel, Lewis Kirby, Jr., Marvin Liebman, Roger Moore, Ronald W. Reagan, William Rickenbacker, Richard Viguerie, and John Wayne.
The National Review file (1958-1989) contains correspondence, memoranda, reports, and other material documenting Rusher's tenure as publisher of this journal. Founded in 1956 by William F. Buckley, the National Review was for many years the only substantial national journal of conservative opinion, and it played a significant role in shaping the development of the modern conservative movement. Staff correspondence and memoranda are perhaps the most significant material in the series. Consisting of letters and memoranda between Rusher, Buckley, and other staff members, these items document editorial decision-making as well as provide insight into the evolution of conservative thinking.
Letters and memoranda from Rusher to Buckley in this file are of special interest. Not only do these writings contain detailed discussions pertaining to the business aspect of the magazine, they also contain candid social and political comments. Included are Rusher's observations about the internal operations of the American Conservative Union, Young Americans for Freedom, and other conservative organizations, his opposition to Richard M. Nixon and desire to break away from the Republican Party to create a national conservative party, and his concerns over what he perceived as the liberal bias of the national media.
The remainder of the material in the National Review file primarily pertains to the administrative operation of the magazine. Included are advertising files, financial records, Buckley's yearly fund-raising appeals, and records relating to various legal matters and lawsuits. Also included are copies of Rusher's monthly newsletters to subscribers.
The Subject File (1960-1988) is comprised of correspondence, memoranda, reports, research notes, printed material, and other items primarily pertaining to Rusher's involvement in various conservative organizations. The series contains considerable documentation of these groups' efforts to incorporate conservative principles into the political and social arena. Significant records include the files of the American Conservative Union. Created in response to the defeat of Barry Goldwater in the 1964 presidential election, this organization was founded to influence American public opinion to accept conservative principles. Rusher's records pertaining to his position as chairman of the group's Political Action Committee are of special interest. Mailings, district action handbooks, and other material document the committee's grass-roots efforts to gather and organize public support for conservative candidates and principles. Also in the file are records pertaining to the Young Americans for Freedom, a political action group organized with the assistance of William F. Buckley. Of note is correspondence between Rusher, Buckley, and others relating to the group's early administrative problems and internal power struggles.
The Subject File also contains material pertaining to Rusher's involvement in political campaigns. Of particular interest are the memoranda, handbooks, and press releases of the National Draft Goldwater Committee. These records document the successful drive to nominate a conservative as the Republican party's 1964 presidential candidate. Although Goldwater was soundly defeated by Lyndon B. Johnson in the election, the campaign was pivotal in that it provided Rusher and other conservatives with their first serious political encounter and created a generation of activists that later clinched the 1980 presidential election for Ronald Reagan. Also in this file are records pertaining to the Committee for the New Majority Party, the short-lived attempt led by Rusher and other activists during the 1970s to abandon the Republican party and found a new national Conservative party.
Rusher's concern with what he regarded as the liberal bias of the national media is featured in files relating to the National News Council. Correspondence, reports, minutes of meetings, and other material document the bipartisan council's work in monitoring the press and arbitrating disputes over the fairness of news stories. Also in the file are Rusher's records pertaining to the organization Concerned Alumni of Princeton documenting his objections to the intolerance by liberals of conservative views and traditional values at Princeton University and other colleges. The Subject File also focuses on conservative opinion regarding the government of South Africa and other African countries. Included are extensive files related to the American-African Affairs Association launched by conservative thinkers to counter the opposite views of the African-American Institute.
The Speeches and Writings series (1958-1989) includes correspondence, transcripts and programs pertaining to Rusher's numerous speaking engagements. Of particular interest are files covering his participation in debates with well-known figures such as Ralph Nader, William B. Shockley, and Ramsey Clark. Also in the series are extensive files covering his syndicated newspaper column "The Conservative Advocate." The file documents Rusher's views on such topics as the Vietnam War, the ideological biases of the national media, student protesters, and foreign affairs, and other political and social issues.
Also found in the file are research notes, press releases, transcripts and related material concerning Rusher's regular appearances on television and radio programs. Various folders document his work on the television program "The Advocates." This weekly program examined contemporary issues from both the liberal and conservative side, featuring Rusher as the advocate for the conservative point of view. Also present are transcripts of the political and social commentaries he wrote and read on the air for the Associated Press radio network, and items portraying his part in the making of "The Conservatives," a television documentary on the history of the modern conservative movement.
Within the writings file are drafts, research notes and publishing material relating to Rusher's articles and books. Correspondence and research material regarding The Coming Battle for the Media illustrate Rusher's deep concern over what he perceived to be the dangerous liberal inclination of the national media despite the efforts of such organizations as the National News Council. His distress over American communists and their alleged infiltration into public and private institutions is documented by drafts and research materials pertaining to his book Special Counsel, an account of his work with the Senate Internal Security Subcommittee in 1956-1957. The file also includes a substantial amount of "fan mail" from people who heard his speeches, watched his television programs, or read his columns and books.
The Microfilm File (1957-1969) consists of thirty-four reels containing microfilm of material from a period when the National Review office filmed the vast bulk of its files and discarded the originals. The film contains general correspondence, subject files, and speeches and writings. The arrangement of material on the microfilm reels reflects its order at the time of filming and is divided into alphabetical and chronological segments. The alphabetical segment is arranged by name of person, organization, topic or type of material. The chronological portion, a distillation of the alphabetical file, was kept by Rusher as a reading file and is arranged by date of issue or receipt of material. Researchers using the alphabetical file should scan the material carefully when searching for specific items, as filing methods in the office of the National Review were sometimes inconsistent.
The collection also contains a Diaries series (1940-1988) comprised of daily annotated journals documenting Rusher's personal and professional life. The series will not be available for research until fifty years after Rusher's death.
The 2016 Addition spans the years 1955-2010, with the bulk of the material dating from 1989 to 2009. Papers in the addition complement the initial portion of the collection and relate to Rusher's endeavors as a distinguished fellow of the Claremont Institute, a conservative research organization, and his affiliation with other organizations and foundations such as the Claude and Anne Nelson Harrison Charitable Trust Foundation, the John M. Ashbrook Center for Public Affairs, the Media Research Center, and the Wilbur Foundation. The addition is arranged into four groups: diaries, general correspondence, subject file, and speeches and writings.
The general correspondence, including incoming and outgoing letters dating primarily from 1989 to 2009, documents Rusher's activities in furthering the conservative movement. Much of the general correspondence is of a routine nature relating to political and social issues. It includes letters from family, friends, government officials, journalists, and readers of Rusher's columns. Also represented in the 2016 Addition are articles by Rusher, typescripts and printed copies of his syndicated newspaper column, "The Conservative Advocate," and transcripts for his radio program, and notes for speeches given by Rusher. Featured in the subject files is material documenting Rusher's continued association with the National Review after his retirement from the journal in 1988. Correspondents include Spiro T. Agnew, Patrick J. Buchanan, Priscilla L. Buckley, George Bush, Charlton Heston, Irving Kristol, Nancy Reagan, and Ronald Reagan.