Their Eyes Are Drawn to Empire

I find it funny that the Bush campaign has chosen to highlight the same Reagan speech I alluded to in my column today; I find it downright hilarious that they titled the speech "Empire of Ideals." What did Reagan say about empire in the speech?

There was a time when empires were defined by landmass, subjugated peoples, and military might. But the United States is unique because we are an empire of ideals.

Hardly a ringing endorsement of the neocons' "Invade the World" project, especially given that Reagan was explicitly contrasting this "empire of ideals" with the military/political aggression of the Soviet Union. They wanted to "liberate" Afghanistan and the rest of the Third World, too.