Values

The society upholds an originalist interpretation of the U.S. Constitution, which it identifies with fundamentalist Christian principles, seeks to limit governmental powers, and opposes wealth redistribution, and economic interventionism. which it asserts is infiltrating US governmental administration. 

The society opposed aspects of the 1960s civil rights movement because it claimed the movement had communists in important positions

 In the latter half of 1965, the JBS produced a flyer titled “What’s Wrong With Civil Rights?,” which was used as a newspaper advertisement.^[10][11] In one literary piece, A bircher posed the question about who was behind the Civil Rights movement and then answered his own question by stating:

"The civil rights movement in the United States, with all of its growing agitation and riots and bitterness, and insidious steps towards the appearance of a civil war, has not been infiltrated by the Communists, as you now frequently hear.

Then he continued, "It has been deliberately and almost wholly created by the Communists patiently building up to this present stage for more than forty years.”^[12]

The society opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, claiming it violated the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and overstepped individual states' rights to enact laws regarding civil rights.

The society opposes "one world government", and has an immigration reduction view onimmigration reform.

It opposes the United Nations, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), the Free Trade Area of the Americas(FTAA), and other free trade agreements.

They argue the U.S. Constitution has been devalued to favor of political and economic globalization, and that such alleged trend is not accidental

 It cites the existence of the Security and Prosperity Partnership as evidence of a push towards a North American Union.^[13] 

The movement has been characterized by various journalists who have studied and written about them as ""ultraconservative",^[15] "far right",^[16] and "extremist".^[17] The Southern Poverty Law Center lists the society as a "'Patriot' Group".^[18] Other sources consider the society as part of the patriot movement.^[19][20]
According to its own two manifestos, it is an American political advocacy group that supports anti-communism, limited government, a Constitutional Republic^[1][2] and personal freedom.^[3] 
That all sounds well and good until one looks at the extremes to which the society wants to take these principles.
The society upholds an originalist interpretation of the U.S. Constitution, which it identifies with fundamentalist Christian principles, seeks to limit governmental powers, and opposes wealth redistribution, and economic interventionism.
The Society opposes totalatarianism, communism, fascism, and socialism.  And members will label any government official they oppose as either a "communist", a "socialist" or a "fascist."

History

Origins

The society was established in Indianapolis, Indiana, on December 9, 1958, by a group of 12 led by Robert Welch, Jr., a retired candy manufacturer from Belmont, Massachusetts. Welch named the new organization after John Birch, an American Baptist missionary and U.S. military intelligence officer who was killed by communist forces in China in August 1945, shortly after the conclusion ofWorld War II. Welch claimed that Birch was an unknown but dedicated anti-communist,^[6] and the first American casualty, Welch contended, of the Cold War.

1960s

In the 1960s Welch insisted that the Johnson administration's fight against communism in Vietnam was part of a communist plot aimed at taking over the United States.

Welch demanded that the United States get out of Vietnam, thus aligning the Society with the far left.^[31] The society opposed water fluoridation, which it called "mass medicine"^[32] and saw as a communist plot to poison Americans.^[33]

The JBS was moderately active in the 1960s with numerous chapters, but rarely engaged in coalition building with other conservatives.

Indeed, it was rejected by most conservatives because of Welch's conspiracy theories.

As Ayn Rand said in a 1964 Playboy interview, "I consider the Birch Society futile, because they are not for capitalism but merely against communism... I gather they believe that the disastrous state of today's world is caused by a communist conspiracy. This is childishly naive and superficial. No country can be destroyed by a mere conspiracy, it can be destroyed only by ideas."^[34][35]

Eisenhower issue

Welch wrote in a widely circulated statement, The Politician, "Could Eisenhower really be simply a smart politician, entirely without principles and hungry for glory, who is only the tool of the Communists? The answer is yes." He went on. "With regard to ... Eisenhower, it is difficult to avoid raising the question of deliberate treason."^[43]

The controversial paragraph was removed before final publication of The Politician.^[44]

The sensationalism of Welch's charges against Eisenhower prompted several conservatives and Republicans, most prominently Goldwater and the intellectuals of William F. Buckley's circle, to renounce outright or quietly shun the group.

Buckley, an early friend and admirer of Welch, regarded his accusations against Eisenhower as "paranoid and idiotic libels" and attempted unsuccessfully to purge Welch from the Birch Society.^[45]

 From then on Buckley, who was editor of National Review, became the leading intellectual spokesman and organizer of the anti-Bircher conservatives.^[46]

 In fact, Buckley's biographer John B. Judis wrote that "Buckley was beginning to worry that with the John Birch Society growing so rapidly, the right-wing upsurge in the country would take an ugly, even Fascist turn rather than leading toward the kind of conservatism National Review had promoted."^[46]

To Be Continued

1. 
   
   1. 
      
      1. 1^ Principles of the John Birch Society, 1962. "We believe that a Constitutional Republic, such as our Founding Fathers gave us, is probably the best of all forms of government
      
      
      2. 
         
         1. 
            
            1. ^ LectLaw "We believe that our system of government, a Constitutional Republic, is the finest yet developed by man."
            
            
         
         
      
      
      3. ^ "The JBS Mission". The John Birch Society. Retrieved 2010-02-18.
      
      
      4. ^ Webb, Clive. Rabble rousers: the American far right in the civil rights era. Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press, 2010 ISBN 0820327646 p. 10
      
      
      5. ^ Bernstein, Richard (May 21, 2007). "The JFK assassination and a '60s leftist prism Letter from America". International Herald Tribune (Paris): p. 2.
         JORDAN, IDA KAY (August 26, 2001). "VOTERS ADMIRED N.C. SENATOR'S INDEPENDENT STREAK, SOUTHERN CHARM". Virginian — Pilot (Norfolk, Va.): p. J.1.
         Brinkley, Douglas (February 10, 1997). "The Right Choice for the C.I.A.". New York Times: p. A.15.
      
      
      6. ^ ^a ^b Schoenwald, Jonathan M. (2002). "Chapter 3 - A New Kind of Conservatism: The John Birch Society". A Time for Choosing: The Rise of Modern American Conservatism. Oxford University Press (US). ISBN 0195157265.
      
      
      7. ^ Dan Barry (June 25, 2009). "Holding Firm Against Plots by Evildoers". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-04-04.
      
      
      8. ^ ^a ^b The New American.
      
      
      9. ^ ^a ^b "Larry McDonald on the New World Order". Liveleak. 2008-02-15. Retrieved 2008-07-18.
      
      
      10. ^ Epstein, Benjamin R.; Forster, Arnold (1966). Report on the John Birch Society, 1966. Random House. p. 9.
      
      
      11. ^ What's Wrong with Civil Rights?. Belmont, MA: American Opinion. 1965. OCLC 56596124.
      
      
      12. ^ "The John Birch Society Asks: What's Wrong With Civil Rights?". The Post-Times (West Palm Beach, FL): p. A10 cols. 1–6. 31 October 1965. Retrieved 30 January 2011.
      
      
      13. ^ Farmer, Brian (2007-09-17). "The North American Union: Conspiracy Theory or Conspiracy Fact?". The John Birch Society. Archived from the original on 2007-10-20. Retrieved 2011-09-20.
      
      
      14. ^ Wright p55
      
      
      15. ^ Lunsford, J. Lynn (February 4, 2009). "Business Bookshelf: Piles of Green From Black Gold".Wall Street Journal: p. A.11.
          "Beck's backing bumps Skousen book to top". Deseret News (Salt Lake City, Utah). March 21, 2009.
          Byrd, Shelia (May 25, 2008). "Churches tackle tough topic of race". Sunday Gazette — Mail(Charleston, W.V.): p. C.5.
      
      
      16. ^ Burch, Kurt; Robert Allen Denemark (1997). Constituting international political economy. Lynne Rienner Publishers. p. 125. ISBN 9781555876609.
          Oshinsky, David (January 27, 2008). "In the Heart of the Heart of Conspiracy". New York Times Book Review: p. 23.
          Danielson, Chris (February 2009). ""Lily White and Hard Right": The Mississippi Republican Party and Black Voting, 1965-1980". The Journal of Southern History (Athens) 75 (1): 83.
          Lee, Martha F (Fall 2005). "NESTA WEBSTER: The Voice of Conspiracy". Journal of Women's History (Baltimore) 17 (3): 81.
      
      
      17. ^ LIEBMAN, MARVIN (March 17, 1996). "PERSPECTIVE ON POLITICS; The Big Tent Isn't Big Enough; By allowing extremists to flourish openly, the GOP forces out those who represent the party's moderate values.". Los Angeles Times: p. 5.
          TOBIN, JONATHAN S. (March 9, 2008). "The writer who chased the anti-Semites out". Jerusalem Post: p. 14.
          Gerson, Michael (March 10, 2009). "Looking for conservatism". Times Daily (Florence, Ala.).
      
      
      18. ^ "'Patriot' Groups". Southern Poverty Law Center. Spring 2009. Retrieved 2009-07-31. "Generally, Patriot groups define themselves as opposed to the 'New World Order' or advocate or adhere to extreme antigovernment doctrines. ... Listing here does not imply that the groups themselves advocate or engage in violence or other criminal activities, or are racist."
      
      
      19. ^ Thomas, Jeff (February 13, 1995). "Determined `patriots' say their time has come/ Reduction of government sought". Colorado Springs Gazette - Telegraph: p. A.1.
      
      
      20. ^ Junas, Daniel (March 14, 1995). "DISAFFECTED CITIZENS FORMING ARMED MILITIAS". Seattle Post - Intelligencer: p. A.9.
      
      
      21. ^ Davis, Jonathan T. (1997). Forbes Richest People: the Forbes Annual Profile of the World's Wealthiest Men and Women. Wiley. pp. 138. ISBN 9780471177517. "Founding member (1958) John Birch Society — reportedly after seeing Russian friends liquidated"
      
      
      22. ^ Hoover's 500: Profiles of America's Largest Business Enterprises. Hoover's Business Press. 1996. pp. 286. ISBN 9781573110099. "In 1929 Koch took his process to the Soviet Union, but he grew disenchanted with Stalinism and returned home to become a founding member of the anticommunist John Birch Society."
      
      
      23. ^ Wayne, Leslie (7 December 1986). "Brothers at Odds.". The New York Times 
      
      
      24. 
          
          1. ^ Wayne, Leslie (7 December 1986). "Brothers at Odds.". The New York Times (NY): p. Sec. 6; Part 2, p 100 col. 1.. ISSN 0362-4331. "He returned a fervent anti-Communist who would later become a founding member of the John Birch Society."
          
          
          2. ^ Diamond, Sara (1995) Roads to Dominion: Right-Wing Movements and Political Power in the United States NY: Guilford Press p. 324 n. 86. ISBN 0-89862-862-8
          
          
          3. ^ Mayer, Jane (2010-08-30). "Covert Operations: The billionaire brothers who are waging a war against Obama.". The New Yorker (Condé Nast Publications). Retrieved 2011-02-06.
          
          
          4. ^ Welch, Robert E. (1961). Blue Book of the John Birch Society. American Opinion Books. ISBN 0-88279-215-6.
          
          
          5. ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "John Birch Society". Political Research Associates. Retrieved 2008-07-18.
          
          
          6. ^ John Birch Society Speakers Bureau
          
          
          7. ^ Matthew Lyons; Chip Berlet (2000). Right-Wing Populism in America: Too Close for Comfort. New York: The Guilford Press. pp. 179. ISBN 1-57230-562-2.
          
          
          8. ^ French, William Marshall (1967). American Secondary Education. Odyssey Press. pp. 477.ISBN 0771991983. Retrieved 2008-07-20.
          
          
          9. ^ Stephen Earl, Bennett (1971). "Modes of Resolution of a 'Belief Dilemma' in the Ideology of the John Birch Society". Journal of Politics 33 (3): 735–772. doi:10.2307/2128280.JSTOR 2128280.
          
          
          10. ^ Coates, Paul (April 28, 1966). "It's a Day of Decision". Los Angeles Times: p. 3.
          
          
          11. ^ Schneider, Dona (2011). Public Health: The Development of a Discipline, Volume 2, Twentieth-Century Challenges. Rutgers University Press. p. 116. ISBN 978-0-8135-5009-1.
          
          
          12. ^ "Who was Ayn Rand? - a biography, Playboy interview, 1964". Retrieved 2008-07-18.
          
          
          13. ^ "The Atlas Society : "The 'Lost' Parts of Ayn Rand's Playboy Interview"".
          
          
          14. ^ Prince, Gregory A. (2004). "The Red Peril, the Candy Maker, and the Apostle: David O. Mckay's Confrontation with Communism". Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 37 (2): 37–94.
          
          
          15. ^ Bryant, John. "The John Birch Society – Exposed!". Retrieved 2008-07-18.
          
          
          16. ^ "A Spectre Haunting Mormonism". Retrieved 2008-07-18.
          
          
          17. ^ Bove, Nicholas J., Jr.. "The Belmont Brotherhood". Retrieved 2008-07-18.
          
          
          18. ^ Robert Welch (1963). The Neutralizers. John Birch Society. p. 20.
          
          
          19. ^ William F. Buckley, "Goldwater, the John Birch Society, and Me"
          
          
          20. ^ Ronald Sullivan, "Foes of Rising Birch Society Organize in Jersey," New York Times, April 20, 1966, page 1
          
          
          21. ^ Quoted at "Glenn Beck talks with JBS President John F. McManus" Aug. 15, 2006.
          
          
          22. ^ Welch, Robert (1975). The Politician. Boston: Western Islands. cxxxviii–cxxxix. ISBN 99908-64-98-5. "At this point in the original manuscript, there was one paragraph in which I expressed my own personal belief as to the most likely explanation of the events and actions with this document had tried to bring into focus. In a confidential letter, neither published nor offered for sale and restricted to friends who were expected to respect the confidence but offer me in exchange their own points of view, this seemed entirely permissible and proper. It does not seem so for an edition of the letter that is now to be published and given, probably, fairly wide distribution. So that paragraph, and two explanatory paragraphs, connected with it, have been omitted here. And the reader is left entirely free to draw his own conclusions."
          
          
          23. ^ John B. Judis, William F. Buckley, Jr.: Patron Saint of the Conservatives (2001) pp 193-200
          
          
          24. ^ ^a ^b Confounding Fathers: The Tea Party’s Cold War Roots by historian Sean Wilentz, The New Yorker, October 18, 2010
          
          
          25. ^ Haiman, Franklyn Saul; Tedford, Thomas L.; Herbeck, Dale (2005). "Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc". Freedom Of Speech In The United States. Strata Publishing. ISBN 1-891136-10-0.
          
          
          26. ^ Guthrie, Andrew (1999-11-24). "Is Panama Canal Falling Under Chinese Control?". Voice of America. Retrieved 2008-07-25.
          
          
          27. ^ The Ross Institute.
          
          
          28. ^ https://www.jbs.org/index.php/inflation-taxes-economy-blog/4569
          
          
          29. ^ "Before Colbert, there was Dizzy" : WFIU Public Radio, 2007.
          
          
          30. ^ "Talkin' John Birch Paranoid Blues". BobDylan.com. Retrieved 2011-02-24.
          
          
          31. ^ JENKINS, LOGAN (March 27, 1999). "Fluoride feud hasn't lost its bite". The San Diego Union - Tribune: p. B.11.
          
          
          32. ^ MSN reviews "At the Bitter End" by The Chad Mitchell Trio
          
          
          33. ^ List of INWO groups.
          
          
          34. ^ Walt Kelly biography from BPIB.com
          
          
          35. ^ Coyne, Connie (April 12, 2003). "Cartoonists Are an Independent Lot -- as 'Boondocks' Proves".The Salt Lake Tribune: p. B.2.
          
          
          36. ^ Stone (1974); Wilcox (1988).