Pat Buchanan heard the raucous cheers of supporters and the boos and insults of critics before speaking a word at Claremont McKenna College's Pickford Auditorium last Thursday. Beyond voicing strong opinions with respect to Buchanan, the divided audience had little in common. Buchanan's supporters filled the first five rows. They came from all over the Inland Empire, and were almost entirely white and elderly.

The rest of the audience was made up of students, most from the Claremont Colleges. Some held signs denouncing Buchanan. More wore signs or stickers showing their support for Gore. But the majority sat quietly, trying to hear Buchanan's words above the roar of others. Buchanan began by criticizing the Republican and Democratic candidates for the Presidency.

"Those two are princes of royal blood," he charged. "And their leadership differs only in the name written on the door of the oval office."

Buchanan then turned his attention to foreign policy, particularly regarding China and the Balkans. "It's foolhardy to trade with and strengthen foreign governments when we don't know their intentions," he said. "And we have overcommitted our troops around the globe."

Suddenly it became difficult to hear Buchanan. A group of activist students gathered outside the open doors of the back entrance to the auditorium and began a series of anti-Buchanan chants. For a while his words were drowned out entirely.

Eventually, audience members in the doorway packed themselves more tightly into the crowded aisles. The door was closed. Buchanan's words were audible again, as were the alternating phrases of the students outdoors:

"Hate is not a political platform."

"We love women."

"Our college, our home, Buchanan go home!"

Buchanan then turned his attention to immigration. Noting that immigrants have long enriched our nation, he likened them to the Mississippi River, stating that "as we have seen recently, the Mississippi is only a good thing until it overflows."

He went on to speak of America's linguistic and cultural ghettos, and said that we need to combat the hyphenization of America. "Should I refer to myself as a Euro-American?" he asked. "We used to work toward common goals as Americans. If we continue to fragment ourselves, to fail to assimilate everyone into American culture, American unity will die."

After speaking for about 30 minutes Buchanan began to field questions from the audience. The period began with relatively neutral questions. Buchanan told an audience member that the United States is foolish to trade with China when we do not know the intentions of the Communist giant. He also declared that the US should have a more even-handed approach in the Middle East.

"Both Israel and Palestine are to be held accountable for the violence," he said. Throughout the questioning period, the back door would be thrown open as someone left the auditorium, and the muffled voices of the protestors outside would rise to a roar.

"Hate is not a political platform."

Buchanan's words were drowned out until the door swung shut.

While most questions were phrased neutrally, some audience members also took the opportunity to make their views known. Most memorable was CMC Student Tiffany Pierce. "I'm here speaking on behalf of those with multicultural concerns at this meeting," she began.