A Conspiratorial Life

Though you may not know his name, Robert Welch (1899-1985)founder of the John Birch Societyis easily one of the most significant architects of our current political moment. In A Conspiratorial Life, the first biography of Welch, Edward H. Miller delves deep into the life of an overlooked figure whose ideas nevertheless reshaped the American right. A child prodigy who entered college at age 12, Welch became an unlikely candy magnate, founding the company that created Sugar Daddies, Junior Mints, and other famed confections. In 1958, he funneled his wealth into establishing the organization that would define his legacy and change the face of American politics: the John Birch Society. Though the groups paranoiac right-wing nativism was dismissed by conservative thinkers like William F. Buckley, its ideas gradually moved from the far-right fringe into the mainstream. By exploring the development of Welchs political worldview, A Conspiratorial Life shows how the John Birch Societys rabid libertarianismand its highly effective grassroots networkingbecame a profound, yet often ignored or derided influence on the modern Republican Party. Miller convincingly connects the accusatory conservatism of the midcentury John Birch Society to the inflammatory rhetoric of the Tea Party, the Trump administration, Q, and more. As this book makes clear, whether or not you know his name or what he accomplished, its hard to deny that were living in Robert Welchs America.