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(This article was posted on Wikipedia.org on April 15, 2006. It was deleted on December 21, 2007, as part of a "Wikistalking" move against its author, Billy Hathorn. Mr. Toledano was the Republican candidate for mayor of New Orleans in 1970 and for the U.S. Senate in 1972, and has since been a "paleoconservative" columnist. Now Wikipedia says he lacks "notability".)

(This article was posted on Wikipedia.org on April 15, 2006. It was deleted on December 21, 2007, as part of a "Wikistalking" move against its author, Billy Hathorn. Mr. Toledano was the Republican candidate for mayor of New Orleans in 1970 and for the U.S. Senate in 1972, and has since been a "paleoconservative" columnist. Now Wikipedia falsely claims that he lacks "notability".)

Toledano's performance was extremely weak. His best showing was a meager 30 percent in Jefferson Parish, which supported Treen for Congress and Nixon for president. In previously inclined Republican parishes Iberia and Caddo, for instance, Toledano failed to win even a fourth of the vote.

Toledano's performance was extremely weak. His best showing was a meager 30 percent in Jefferson Parish, which supported Treen for Congress and Nixon for president. In previously inclined Republican parishes Iberia and Caddo, for instance, Toledano failed to win even a fourth of the vote.

'''Paleoconservative columnist'''

In 1982, President Ronald W. Reagan considered nominating Toledano to a vacancy on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, based in New Orleans. The civil rights lobby objected to Toledano's previous affiliation with the States' Rights Party, the Republican-majority Senate showed no enthusiasm for the choice, and Reagan never made the nomination. Ironically, in 1987, Reagan tried to place former Governor Treen on the same court, and the then Democratic Senate majority refused to consider his nomination. Toledano and Treen both had past ties to the States' Rights Party which sunk attempts to place them into federal judicial positions.

Toledano returned to his law practice, with his political ventures seemingly in his past. Years later, he emerged as a columnist, author, and political thinker, writing for William F. Buckley's ''National Review'' and Thomas Fleming's ''Chronicles Magazine'', a paleoconservative publication from Rockford, Illinois. Paleoconservatives generally follow the viewpoints of such individuals as the defeated presidential candidate Patrick J. Buchanan or the late columnist Samuel Francis. They believe that "neoconservatives" in national Republican administrations have "sold out" traditional Republican values to keep the United States involved in endless war to promote "democracy" and to promote international trade agreements which lead to outsourcing of American jobs. Toledano hence writes in the Buchanan-Francis mold by taking what the media would call "hard-right" positions on issues. Over the years, Toledano alienated many politicians.

 

In 1983, the Toledanos -- Ben, wife Roulhac, three daughters, and a son -- relocated to Charlottesville, Virginia, where they renovated a $200,000 warehouse building into an elegant home true to cultural tastes in the home city of Thomas Jefferson. Toledano bought five copies of classical books, one for his wife and himself and one for each of their children. He particularly stressed southern classicists such as Walker Percy and Eudora Welty.

 

By the 1990s, however, the Toledanos had returned to the New Orleans area, where Ben continued his career as a lawyer, columnist, and man of letters.  

 

 

Toledano emerged as a columnist, author, and political thinker, writing for William F. Buckley's ''National Review'' and Thomas Fleming's ''Chronicles Magazine'', a paleoconservative publication from Rockford, Illinois. Paleoconservatives generally follow the viewpoints of such individuals as the defeated presidential candidate Patrick J. Buchanan or the columnist Samuel Francis (1947-2005). They believe that "neoconservatives" in national Republican administrations have "sold out" traditional Republican values to keep the United States involved in endless war to promote "democracy" and to promote international trade agreements which lead to outsourcing and decline of American jobs. Toledano hence writes in the Buchanan-Francis mold by taking what the media would call "hard-right" positions on issues. Over the years, Toledano alienated many politicians. He also spoke out against the "barbaric" practice of New Orleans Mardi Gras, the most popular of his city's annual festivals. He praised the Jewish community in the city, who he claimed had primarily preserved the best of New Orleans social culture.  

In 1981, Governor Edwin Washington Edwards said that he expected to draw considerable Republican support when he ran for a third term in 1983 against sitting Republican Governor Treen. But, Edwards clarified, "I would not want Ben Toledano supporting me … he’s poison. I don’t want him involved in my campaign." Toledano replied: "Most people don’t receive very many special compliments in a lifetime. I am deeply flattered by Edwards’ remarks. Love me most for the enemies I have made."

In 1981, Governor Edwin Washington Edwards said that he expected to draw considerable Republican support when he ran for a third term in 1983 against sitting Republican Governor Treen. But, Edwards clarified, "I would not want Ben Toledano supporting me … he’s poison. I don’t want him involved in my campaign." Toledano replied: "Most people don’t receive very many special compliments in a lifetime. I am deeply flattered by Edwards’ remarks. Love me most for the enemies I have made."

In 2004, Toledano wrote a review of Kevin Phillips's ''American Dynasty: Aristocracy, Fortune and the Politics of Deceit in the House of Bush''. Toledano was as critical of the Bushes as any Democrat had been: "There was a time when people in high places believed in avoiding even the appearance of impropriety. Phillips' book suggest that the Bushes do not even know what propriety is." Toledano continued, in reference to the religious conversion of George W. Bush: "I choose not to question the sincerity of George W.’s conversion and faith . . . Unlike his father, whose deeds defy and defile his words, he may well be a true believer even if he uses his beliefs to obtain political support and votes."

In 2004, Toledano wrote a review of Kevin Phillips's ''American Dynasty: Aristocracy, Fortune and the Politics of Deceit in the House of Bush''. Toledano was as critical of the Bushes as any Democrat had been: "There was a time when people in high places believed in avoiding even the appearance of impropriety. Phillips' book suggest that the Bushes do not even know what propriety is." Toledano continued, in reference to the religious conversion of George W. Bush: "I choose not to question the sincerity of George W.’s conversion and faith . . . Unlike his father, whose deeds defy and defile his words, he may well be a true believer even if he uses his beliefs to obtain political support and votes."

Toledano resides in Hurricane Katrina-damaged Pass Christian, Mississippi, east of New Orleans.

The Toledanos reside in Hurricane Katrina-damaged Pass Christian, Mississippi, east of New Orleans. He penned a well-known column entitled "New Orleans -- An Autopsy"  about the political implications of Katrina on New Orleans, having concluded that the city was in rampant social decay for a generation before the storm struck so severely in August 2005.