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Founder of the conservative commentary magazine National Review and one of the most influential leaders of the conservative movement, William F. Buckley, Jr., died today in his home in Stamford, Connecticut while working. From the breaking news release on Fox News Online:

William F. Buckley Jr., the erudite Ivy Leaguer and conservative herald who showered huge and scornful words on liberalism as he observed, abetted and cheered on the right’s post-World War II rise from the fringes to the White House, died Wednesday. He was 82.

Political junkies, both from the left and right, cannot underestimate the influence Buckley had in shaping the conservative movement and making it a dominant intellectual and political force in America.

I was personally extremely saddened when I learned of the news. I think Edwin J. Feulner, President of the Heritage Foundation, puts it best in his official statement:

Without Bill Buckley there would be no National Review. And without National Review, there would be no conservative movement, no Heritage Foundation, no President Reagan - or an America that’s recognizable today.

It’s impossible to overstate the importance of National Review. It offered powerful conservative opinion against communism, big government and liberal culture at a time when no one else had the courage to do so.

Here are some other statements from contributors and editors of National Review, from the blog The Corner:

From the Editors of NRO:

If ever an institution were the lengthened shadow of one man, this publication is his. So we hope it will not be thought immodest for us to say that Buckley has had more of an impact on the political life of this country — and a better one — than some of our presidents. He created modern conservatism as an intellectual and then a political movement. He kept it from drifting into the fever swamps. And he gave it a wit, style, and intelligence that earned the respect and friendship even of his adversaries. (To know Buckley was to be reminded that certain people have a talent for friendship.)

He inspired and incited three generations of conservatives, and counting. He retained his intellectual and literary vitality to the end; even in his final years he was capable of the arresting formulation, the unpredictable insight. He presided over NR even in his “retirement,” which was more active than most people’s careers. It has been said that great men are rarely good men. Even more rarely are they sweet and merry, as Buckley was.

From Kathryn Jean Lopez of NRO:

I’m devastated to report that our dear friend, mentor, leader, and founder William F. Buckley Jr., died this morning in his study in Stamford, Connecticut.

He died while at work; if he had been given a choice on how to depart this world, I suspect that would have been exactly it. At home, still devoted to the war of ideas.

As you might expect, we’ll have much more to say here and in NR in the coming days and weeks and months. For now: Thank you, Bill. God bless you, now with your dear Pat. Our deepest condolences to Christopher and the rest of the Buckley family. And our fervent prayer that we continue to do WFB’s life’s work justice.

From Jonah Goldberg, Editor at Large of NRO:

I’m stunned. He will be greatly missed. But we should also remember this was not a life cut tragically short (no matter how much we wish he were still with us). His accomplishments were almost incalculable. As George Will once said, “before there was Ronald Reagan there was Barry Goldwater, before there was Goldwater there was National Review, and before there was National Review there was William F. Buckley.” As conservatives — and as Americans — we are all standing on his shoulders.

From John Hood, President and Chairman of the John Locke Foundation:

I am shocked and dismayed by the news. The conservative movement and American politics were forever transformed by this brilliant, principled, and multi-talented man. I’m sure that there will soon be a flood of such stories, but I’ll have to say that a well-timed, gracious letter from Mr. Buckley in 1987 or so to a then-stressed student-magazine editor helped cement my own choice of conservative journalism as a career.

My thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends.

It is remarkable to see how one person could mean so many to so many and could have such a tremendous influence on American political discourse.

I will post more on him later, but I just wanted to get the word out. Check out CNN, New York Times, Washington Post, and the Drudge Report for updates and their official press releases.

He will be greatly missed.

RIP WFB.

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