John Birch Society

It takes me back to my Goldwater days in Hawthorne where, as a member of the local chapter of the John Birch Society, we turned a 2-1 Democratic advantage into a win for Goldwater.

With an appetite for political activity, we responded to threats of “eminent domain” abuse posed by a city ordinance establishing an urban renewal agency to develop a shopping center. I created a referendum petition and we gathered signatures, as provided for in the California Constitution, which forced the city to put the measure on the ballot. The measure was defeated by a 3,171 to 2,182 vote. During the campaign, I was quoted as saying: “Even Lt. Gov. Glen Anderson shouldn’t have to sell his property if he doesn’t want to.” I was in the mayor’s office with Mayor Wedworth and City Manager Joy West on Election Day when Glen called. He was assured that the election was going well.

The John Birch Society should get most of the credit for today’s Republican Party. Below is an appended quote from:

https://www.niskanencenter.org/how-the-john-birch-society-radicalized-the-american-right/

“Although much of the country dismissed the Birchers as a lunatic fringe, historian Matthew Dallek, in his new book Birchers: How the John Birch Society Radicalized the American Right, argues that the group exercised an outsized influence on the conservative movement and the Republican Party.”

Jack Hickey

San Carlos