Clyburn a big fan of…Barry Goldwater?

A top-ranking House Democrat professed his admiration Monday for a conservative icon, arguing House Republicans should do more to emulate the late Sen. Barry Goldwater (R-Ariz.).

“He was one of my favorite conservatives. He wrote the ‘Conscience of a Conservative,’ one of my favorite books,” House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) said on MSNBC.

Clyburn acknowledged he keeps a copy of the classic conservative manifesto on his desk at work when his former House colleague turned MSNBC host Joe Scarborough pressed him.

“Believe it or not, I do,” Clyburn said.

“And I really believe that some of the current conservatives ought to read that book and practice what Goldwater preached,” the third-ranking House Democrat explained.