Arthur R. Thompson

Arthur Thompson in September 2011.

Arthur R. "Art" Thompson (born 1938 in Seattle) is the CEO of the John Birch Society, and took office in 2005.[1]

Thompson believes that Russian communism remains a serious threat to the USA, and is responsible for much global terrorism[2] including 9/11.[3] He has claimed a number of Islamists including Ayman al-Zawahiri are or were communists.[4] He has criticised both mainstream Republicans and Tea Party figures such as Sarah Palin for failing to see the nature of the threat from Moscow.[5] He also believes in a shadowy international conspiracy including such bodies as the Council on Foreign Relations, the Trilateral Commission and the Rockefeller family that threatens American interests.[6]

Before becoming head of the JBS, he had a long career as an anti-communist activist: he claims to have infiltrated Marxist organizations around his Seattle home in the 1960s.[6] He took control of the John Birch Society in 2005 after launching a "coup" with the support of the organization's former president John McManus.[6]

Citations

  1. ↑ "Art Thompson". John Birch Society website. Retrieved 6 December 2013.
  2. ↑ Terry, Don (Spring 2013). "Bringing Back Birch". Southern Poverty Law Center Intelligence Report (149).
  3. ↑ Conner, Claire (2013). Wrapped in the Flag: A Personal History of America's Radical Right. Beacon Press. ISBN 9780807077511.
  4. ↑ Fenwick, Ben (February 5, 2009). "As conspiracy theories abound in Oklahoma, John Birch Society, others rally". Oklahoma Gazette. Retrieved 6 December 2013.
  5. ↑ "John Birch Society wonders about Palin". Alaska Dispatch. February 10, 2010. Retrieved 6 December 2013.
  6. 1 2 3 Barry, Dan (June 25, 2009). "Holding Firm Against Plots by Evildoers". New York Times. Retrieved 6 December 2013.


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