If you don’t know Dr. Ray Greco, you don’t live in the northern tip of West Virginia, and a shame, too. Norman Rockwell couldn’t have drawn a more appealing physician — kindly, wise, all-capable. Dr. Greco is also a bit of a radio star, hosting a Saturday-morning call-in show called “Let’s Talk Health.” The show is a casual, meandering affair, broadcast from a tiny studio near Weirton. It doesn’t have a great many listeners, but those it does have are eager and devoted.
About a month ago, I found myself a guest on this program: Dr. Greco is my wife’s grandfather. He is also a Democrat, and when I say Democrat, I mean a Democrat like none you’ve ever met — Tip O’Neill, by comparison, never gave a thought to party. Dr. Greco is not exactly thrilled to have a Republican granddaughter, and, worse, he’s got me.
Early on, I took Dr. Greco for a typical Democrat of his generation — something like a present-day Republican. But no. He didn’t cross over to vote for Ronald Reagan, and his party identification is more than a habit. He actually believes the stuff, and so do his friends. For them, it’s always 1930, with a Hooverville in every park. So I have a little fun with Dr. Greco, as he does with me. The week before I was to join him on the radio, he announced to his audience, “Hang on to your hats, folks, but we’re going to have a Republican in here next time. Hate to do it to you.”
As we arrived at the studio, I figured we were in for an hour of pleasant banter. I would say provocative things about the local hero, Sen. Bob Byrd, and Dr. Greco would chide me for Republican selfishness and greed. After a time, his friends would call up and say, “We’re with you, Ray, but go easy on the boy, would you? He doesn’t know any better.”
Instead, “Let’s Talk Health,” on that Saturday, was a cauldron of political bile. It started out mildly enough. Dr. Greco welcomed me to the show, and I said that I was happy to integrate the place — the community had been without philosophical diversity for long enough. “Will you tell your listeners that I don’t have horns and a tail?” I asked. Dr. Greco didn’t seem so sure. (You may wonder what all this has to do with health, but, as Dr. Greco says, his show is about health “broadly defined,” as in, “To vote Republican, you must be mentally ill.”)
I might have sparked things just a tad when I said, “How can a decent, patriotic American like you be a Democrat in the Age of Clinton? If Harry Truman were alive today, he’d be a Republican, and so should you.” The lone technician in the studio rolled his eyes and shot me a look (not for the last time). The switchboard, normally calm, lit up like a Christmas tree. On a sleepy, wintry morning, I had struck a nerve.
The first call turned out to be the friendliest: “Oh, we like Republicans here in West Virginia,” the man said. “We like ’em few and far between.” The next caller delivered a wide-ranging diatribe: Dan Quayle was a dunce (still?) ; Paula Jones was a lying skunk; and Ken Starr was a Republican operative, bankrolled by the hard Right, out to destroy the president (and this was pre- Monica).
As the calls streamed in, I had a mini-revelation: These were political nuts — C-SPAN junkies, probably — who seldom had anybody to talk back to. I was an unexpected opportunity for them, and they were letting me have it with both barrels. Dr. Greco was amused, and a little surprised. Most of his listeners, he had told me, were elderly, interested mainly in pills and twinges. But these screechers were young and combative. Not that Dr. Greco didn’t hit hard, too. I tried to keep the conversation light — “Hey, every building I see around here is named for Sen. Byrd and his wife. How about one for the dog?” — but he insisted on inveighing about the haves and have-nots.
On the ride home, as Dr. Greco dialed up his buddies on the car phone, cackling about our performance, I realized that I was exhausted, and a little taken aback. This was an exotic breed of Democrat — unsmitten by race and gender, but convinced of the saving power of big government, and absolutely besotted with Bill and Hillary Clinton. I was glad to get back to Washington that night. The political atmosphere around Weirton had been awfully hot.
And how do Dr. Greco and his gang feel now, in the throes of Monica fever? Rallied and defiant. Dr. Greco told me the other day, “I love the guy, and I love his wife even more.” He also mentioned the subject of his next show — ” On a Healthy Character Structure.” Wish I could tune in.
JAY NORDLINGER
