Bo Gritz

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This article is about the American Army officer. For the Swedish theologian, see Bo Giertz.
Bo Gritz
Personal details
Born
James Gordon Gritz

(1939-01-18) January 18, 1939 (age 85)
Enid, Oklahoma, U.S.
Political partyPopulist (1984–1996)
Alma materUniversity of Illinois, Urbana-
Champaign
Military service
AllegianceUnited States of America
Branch/service United States Army
Years of service1957–1979
Rank Lieutenant Colonel
UnitB-36, 5th Special Forces Group
Battles/warsVietnam War
AwardsSilver Star (3)
Soldier's Medal
Bronze Star (4)
Purple Heart (2)
Air Medal (26)
Distinguished Flying Cross
Legion of Merit (2)

James Gordon "Bo" Gritz (/ˈɡraɪts/;[1] born January 18, 1939) is an American former United States Army Special Forces officer and presidential candidate. After serving in the Vietnam War and retiring from the military, Gritz has worked on attempted POW rescues in conjunction with the Vietnam War POW/MIA issue. Gritz ran for United States president under the Populist Party in 1992 under the slogan: "God, Guns and Gritz," and published an isolationist political manifesto titled "The Bill of Gritz".[2] Gritz lives in Sandy Valley, Nevada and has four children.

Early life

Gritz was born on January 18, 1939, in Enid, Oklahoma. His father served in the Army Air Force in World War II and was killed in action. He was raised by his maternal grandparents. After being expelled from his local high school, Gritz attended and graduated from Fork Union Military Academy in Virginia.[3]

Military service

Gritz enlisted in the Army on August 20, 1957, and shortly thereafter attended Officer Candidate School (OCS). He was promoted to the rank of captain in 1963, and to major in 1967.

In Vietnam, he commanded detachment "B-36", 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) for a time.[4][5] B-36 was a mixed American and Cambodian-Vietnamese MIKE Force, an eventually battalion-size unit composed mostly of local indigenous people serving as mercenaries that operated in the III Corps area of southern South Vietnam near the Cambodian border.[6] His successful missions included finding and retrieving the black box of a Lockheed U-2 spy plane downed inside enemy territory in Cambodia in December 1966.[7]

After six years in Vietnam, Gritz served in a variety of assignments, including commanding Special Forces in Latin America 1975–1977, as a Desk Officer for the Middle East, and Chief of Congressional Relations for the Defense Security Agency (International Security Affairs) in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (1977–1979) until his retirement in 1979 at the rank of lieutenant colonel. According to Gritz, backed by video evidence, following his formal retirement he also trained the Afghan mujahideen in America on behalf of the government.[8]

General William Westmoreland in his memoir, A Soldier Reports, cites Gritz as "The" American Soldier.[9] Gritz received an array of military awards, and some of these have been called into question. A memo regarding his awards and award recommendations during his time in Vietnam seems to indicate that Gritz was personally involved with the recommendation of some of his medals, including the Legion of Merit, and that some of his award recommendations cited the same missions and incidents, effectively awarding Gritz multiple medals for the same missions, including the Legion of Merit, Air Medal, Silver Star, Bronze Star, and Army Commendation Medal.[10]

Later life

Attempts to locate prisoners of war

During the early 1980s, as part of the Vietnam War POW/MIA issue, Gritz undertook a series of private trips into Southeast Asia, in attempts to locate U.S. prisoners of war that some Americans believed had been detained since the Vietnam War, by the communist governments of Laos and Vietnam, e.g., at Nhommarath. In his forays into Laos, Gritz worked with his fellow special forces veterans and with Laotian anti-communist guerrillas, one of whom was killed by the men of the exiled Laotian warlord Phoumi Nosavan who also abducted the American search party member Dominic "Zap" Zappone for ransom.[11][12] Initially, some abortive technical assistance was provided by elements of the Defense Intelligence Agency in 1981. The later adventures have been financed by high profile donors like Clint Eastwood and Ross Perot.[13][14] Operating out of Thailand, from where he was repeatedly deported by the authorities, Gritz used aliases such as "Richard Patrick Clark".[15] He also testified as a witness before the House committee headed by Stephen Solarz in 1983, but was unable to provide any evidence of the existence of the POWs.[16]

These activities were heavily publicized, controversial and widely decried as haphazard. For instance, as some commentators stated, few supposedly secret missions involved bringing to the border towns women openly selling commemorative POW-rescue T-shirts.[17][18] In the book Inside Delta Force, CSM Eric L. Haney, a former Delta Force operator, claims that the unit was twice told to prepare for a mission involving the rescue of American POWs from Vietnam. However, both times the missions were scrubbed, according to Haney, when Gritz suddenly appeared in the spotlight, drawing too much attention to the issue and making the missions too difficult to accomplish.[19] In 1983, Gritz (who had surrendered himself by walking into a police station) and four of his associates were tried and convicted in Thailand of illegally importing radio equipment during their "Operation Lazarus Omega"; one of them, a former Navy SEAL David Scott Weekly also known as "Doctor Death", was also later convicted in America of smuggling explosives.[20][21] Thailand authorities expressed concern that the Vietnamese forces in Laos would retaliate against them for cross-border armed intrusions and threatened to jail Gritz for 20 years.[22] Vietnamese Foreign Minister Nguyen Co Thach called Gritz's actions "a flagrant violation of the sovereignty of Laos that everyone should denounce."[23]

Conspiracy research and anti-war activism

In 1986, after a trip to Burma (now Myanmar) to interview drug kingpin Khun Sa regarding possible locations of U.S. POWs, Gritz returned from Burma with a videotaped interview of Khun Sa purporting to name several officials in the Reagan administration involved in narcotics trafficking in Southeast Asia. Among those named was Richard Armitage, who later served as Deputy Secretary of State during George W. Bush's first term as president. During this period Gritz established contacts with the Christic Institute,[24] a progressive group which was then pursuing a lawsuit against the U.S. government over charges of drug trafficking in both Southeast Asia and Central America. In 1989, he established the Center for Action, which was active on a number of issues, mostly pertaining to conspiracy theories. Attempting to build bridges among conspiracy theorists and unite activists of both the left and the right, he held a conference in Las Vegas called "Freedom Call '90". Speakers at that conference included October Surprise conspiracy theory researcher Barbara Honegger, Bill Davis of the Christic Institute, far-right writer Eustace Mullins, and several others.

This newfound interest proved to be almost as controversial as his earlier missions searching for POWs. During the 1991 Persian Gulf War, Gritz was an opponent of the war, and linked it to a conspiracy theory alleging plans to implement a one-world government, known as the "New World Order". He appeared on Pacifica Radio stations in California as a guest several times, and for a short time was in demand as a speaker to left-wing and anti-war audiences. However, during this period he also became closely associated with the Christian Patriot movement on the right, and spoke at conferences sponsored by Christian Identity pastor Pete Peters. When these associations became known to those on the left, especially after the publication of a report by the Los Angeles-based group People Against Racist Terror calling Gritz a "front man for fascism",[25] left-wing audiences lost interest in Gritz, and the Christic Institute and Pacifica Radio cut off any further association. He has since distanced himself from the movement.

Populist Party presidential tickets

In the 1988 election, Gritz was the candidate for Vice President of the United States on the Populist Party line; initially, unbeknownst to him, he was billed as the running mate of former Ku Klux Klansman David Duke. Gritz pulled out early in the race and publicly distanced himself from Duke[26] and ran instead for a Nevada Congressional seat.[27] Gritz was then replaced by Floyd Parker on some ballots. Gritz has claimed that he accepted the party's nomination in the belief that he would be the running mate of James Traficant. Shortly after meeting Duke, Gritz wrote that Duke was "a brash, untraveled, overly opinionated, bigoted young man" and that "I will not support anyone that I know to hate any class of Americans."[28]

In the 1992 election, after failing to secure the U.S. Taxpayers' Party's nomination, Gritz ran for President of the United States, again with the Populist Party. Under the campaign slogan "God, Guns and Gritz" and publishing his political manifesto "The Bill of Gritz" (playing on his last name rhyming with "rights"), he called for staunch opposition to what he called "global government" and the "New World Order", ending all foreign aid, and abolishing the federal income tax and the Federal Reserve System.[2] During the campaign, Gritz openly proclaimed the United States to be a "Christian Nation", stating that the country's legal statutes "should reflect unashamed acceptance of Almighty God and His Laws."[29] He received 106,152 votes nationwide, or only 0.14 percent of the popular vote.[2] In two states he had a respectable showing for a third-party candidate: in Utah, where he received 3.84 percent of the vote and in Idaho, where he received 2.13 percent of the vote.[2] In Duchesne County[30] and Oneida County, Idaho,[31] his support topped ten percent,[2] whilst in Franklin County, Idaho, Gritz received over twelve percent and was only 23 votes away from pushing Bill Clinton into fourth place[31] – which has not happened to a major party nominee in any county nationwide since 1916. During his presidential run, part of Gritz's standard stump speech was an idea to pay off the National debt by minting a coin at the Treasury and sending it to the Federal Reserve. This predates the 2012 trillion-dollar coin concept.[32] Among other things, the "Bill of Gritz" called for the complete closing of the border with Mexico, and the dissolution of the Federal Reserve.[33]

Involvement with religious and survivalist groups

In 1984, Gritz and his wife Claudia were baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).[2] However, amid infidelity scandals, Gritz's stake president refused to renew Gritz's temple recommend until Gritz could prove that he had paid federal income tax.[34] In response, Gritz resigned his membership in the LDS Church.[2][34] In 1999, Gritz and his then fourth wife Judy Kirsch became involved in the Church of Israel, a group that originated within the Latter Day Saint movement and has become involved with the Christian Identity movement, from which he has later distanced himself.[2] While he was married to Judy, Gritz was accused of supporting the Christian Identity ideology,[35] in which people of Celtic and Germanic descent can be traced back to the "Lost Tribes of Israel". Many adherents consider Jews to be the Satanic offspring of Eve and the Serpent, while non-whites are "mud peoples" created before Adam and Eve.[36] He has been accused of White supremacy by some, although he denounced the belief in an interview with The Militia Watchdog, saying "I've served with black, white, yellow, brown, red; all religions; nobody ever asked you about your religion, your blood bleeds red the same as everyone else."[37] Gritz also openly denounced racism during his SPIKE (Specially Prepared Individuals for Key Events) training courses, and welcomed all who wanted to join in the training, regardless of race.

In 1994, together with former Arizona State Senator Jerry Gillespie and other partners, Gritz established a 200-acre survivalist community and paramilitary training center in Kamiah, Idaho (contiguous to the Nez Perce people) called Almost Heaven.[38] He left Almost Heaven in late 1998, following his suicide attempt (a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest with a .45 Colt pistol while dressed in full military regalia with all his medals[39]). Under influence of the Church of Israel ideology, Gritz then moved to Nevada where he rebranded his Center for Action (originally dedicated to "putting accountability back into government"[40]) as the more spiritual Fellowship of Eternal Warriors, a selected group of "warrior-priests" dedicated to oppose the forces of evil (defined by him as a globalist cabal of feminists, male homosexuals, "and other liberal activists ... promoting abortion, pornography, pedophilia, Godless laws, adultery, New Age, international banking", and led by "the worshippers of Baal with their roots still in Babylonian mysticism".[41]).[42] Five years after Gritz had left Almost Heaven, the community was described as almost defunct.[43]

Several times, Gritz used his influence and reputation in the Christian Patriot movement in attempts to negotiate conclusions between legal authorities and far-right activists. In 1992, Gritz attracted national attention as mediator to the crisis involving his fellow Army Special Forces veteran (as well as Christian Identity follower and White separatist) Randy Weaver at Ruby Ridge, Idaho.[44] He intervened on behalf of Weaver who, with his family, was living at his survivalist refuge at Ruby Ridge, after U.S. Marshals attempted to arrest him for failure to appear in court. The federal siege, which resulted in the deaths of a U.S. Marshal and Weaver's son and wife, ended after Gritz convinced Weaver, his daughter, and family friend Kevin Harris to leave their cabin and place his faith and trust in the court system. Attorney Gerry Spence was asked by Gritz to defend Weaver, which he did successfully, and in turn defended his action to do so in a letter to Alan Hirschfield.[45] In 1996, Gritz unsuccessfully attempted to negotiate a conclusion to the standoff by the Montana Freemen, an anti-government White separatist militia group of Christian Patriot sovereign citizens who were wanted on an assortment of charges. Randy Weaver accompanied him during the trip.[46] After speaking with the Freemen, who have taken an "oath to God" not to get out unless their demands were met,[47] Gritz left in frustration, stating that they presented him with what he called a religious and legal "mumbo-jumbo" to support their claims,[48] and predicting the outcome as the Freemen being arrested by the FBI following "a confrontation of wills".[49]

Later activities

In 1998, Gritz organized a fruitless search for the Centennial Olympic Park bomber Eric Rudolph in order to save Rudolph's life and persuade him to surrender to law enforcement.[50] In 2005, Gritz became an active protester for intervention in the Terri Schiavo case. On 19 March 2005, when her feeding tube was removed, he was arrested for trespassing after trying to enter the hospice where she lived.[51] Beginning in 2014, Gritz hosted a radio show on Americanvoiceradio.com known as Freedom Call.[52]

Writings

Gritz is the author of three books. The first, A Nation Betrayed, was published in 1989 and contained Gritz's allegations of drug trafficking and a POW coverup, based on the Khun Sa interview. The second, Called To Serve, was published in 1992 and expanded on the previous book to cover a wide range of conspiracies, including the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and allegations of a conspiracy to establish a new world order. His third book is titled My Brother's Keeper and was published in 2003.[53]

In fiction and documentaries

The character of John "Hannibal" Smith on the 1980s television series The A-Team was loosely based on Gritz, as were some of Chuck Norris' film heroes.[54] Reportedly, Gritz also partially inspired several other characters, including these of Colonel Kurtz in the 1978 film Apocalypse Now, and John Rambo, the protagonist of the Rambo franchise.[55] Gritz himself played the character of Lt. Col. Steel, a highly fictionalized version of himself, in the 1990 film Rescue Force.[56]

The real Gritz was portrayed by Bob Gunton in the 1996 television film The Siege at Ruby Ridge (Ruby Ridge: An American Tragedy), as well as by Vic Browder in the first episode of the 2018 television miniseries WACO. In 1983, actor William Shatner purchased entertainment rights to Gritz's life story.[57]

Gritz's community Almost Heaven featured in the episode "Survivalists" of Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends in 1998. The 2017 documentary Erase and Forget had filmmaker Andrea Luka Zimmerman follow Gritz for more than 10 years, including re-enacting scenes from his life.

References

  1. ^ Rabinovitz, Jonathan (2 October 1996). "A Militia Leader's New Battle With Authority". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 May 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Newell G. Bringhurst and Craig L Foster (2008). The Mormon Quest for the Presidency (Ann Arbor, Mich.: John Whitmer Books, ISBN 1-934901-11-3) pp. 208–226.
  3. ^ Harris, Art (1983-03-03). "Bo Gritz: The Glory &". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2017-12-18.
  4. ^ Donahue, James C. (1997). Mobile Guerrilla Force: With The Special Forces In War Zone D. New York: St. Martin's Paperbacks. p. 260. ISBN 0-312-96164-2. OCLC 36494698.
  5. ^ Detra, Dick (2005). "B-56, Bo Gritz and Cambodia". In Special Operations Association (ed.). Special Operations Association. Turner Pub Co. p. 84. ISBN 1-59652-156-2. OCLC 71200760.
  6. ^ "Biography". Bo Gritz. 2004. Archived from the original on 25 August 2013. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
  7. ^ Art Harris (1980-07-08). "The Great Green Beret War-Story Weekend". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
  8. ^ "Bo Gritz versus the Taliban". 24 August 2021.
  9. ^ Westmoreland, General (1976). A Soldier Reports. ISBN 9780385004343.
  10. ^ "Gritz Awards Himself". Archived from the original on 2011-05-19. Retrieved 2010-12-24.
  11. ^ William Branigin (1983-02-22). "Thais Probe Adventurers' Search for POWs in Laos". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
  12. ^ "Soldier of Fortune Interviews: Veterans and Volunteers for Viet Nam". Soldier of Fortune. June–August 1975.
  13. ^ "Private Raid on Laos Reported". The New York Times. February 1983.
  14. ^ ""What kind of life do I have without my bride?"". 28 September 1998.
  15. ^ "James 'Bo' Gritz Reportedly Deported Again by Thailand". Associated Press.
  16. ^ Philip Geyelin (1983-03-31). "Bo Gritz Is Not the Issue". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
  17. ^ Colonel Robert K. Brown; Jim Graves (Spring 1983). "Hoaglund Hoax: Gritz Caught in War Lie". Soldier of Fortune: 51–53.
  18. ^ Keating, Susan Katz (1994). Prisoners of Hope: Exploiting the POW/MIA Myth in America. Random House. ISBN 0-679-43016-4.[page needed]
  19. ^ Haney, Eric (2005). Inside Delta Force. United States: Delta. pp. 316–317. ISBN 978-0385339360.
  20. ^ "Former Gritz Associate Pleads Guilty in Explosives Shipment". Associated Press.
  21. ^ "Ex-Associates Doubt Onetime Drug Trafficker's Claim of CIA Ties". Los Angeles Times. 21 October 1996.
  22. ^ Patrick E. Tyler (1983-02-03). "Laos Raid Draws Ire Of Thais". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
  23. ^ William Branigin (1983-03-01). "American Who Sought POWs Surrenders to Police in Thailand". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
  24. ^ Berlet, Chip; Matthew Nemiroff Lyons (2000). Right-Wing Populism in America: Too Close for Comfort. New York: The Guilford Press. p. 340. ISBN 1-57230-562-2. OCLC 43929926.
  25. ^ People Against Racist Terror (March 1992). Front man for fascism?: "Bo" Gritz and the Racist Populist Party. OCLC 28540420.
  26. ^ Oltermann, Philip (2017-02-13). "Erase and Forget: new documentary reveals life story of the real Rambo". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  27. ^ Diamond, Sara. (1995). Roads to Dominion: Right-Wing Movements and Political Power in the United States. Guilford Press. p. 264. ISBN 0-89862-864-4.
  28. ^ Gritz, Bo. https://web.archive.org/web/19980130011925/http://www.bogritz.com/lw/nokidnap.html
  29. ^ "LDS faith has been obstacle for string of presidential candidates".
  30. ^ Our Campaigns; UT US Presidential Election November 03, 1992
  31. ^ a b Our Campaigns; ID US Presidential Election, November 03, 1992
  32. ^ Sewell, Thomas. "Where does the mint a coin to pay off the debt idea originate from?". Catallaxy Media. Archived from the original on 15 February 2013. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
  33. ^ Newell G. Bringhurst and Craig L Foster (2008). The Mormon Quest for the Presidency. Ann Arbor, Mich.: John Whitmer Books. pp. 208–226. ISBN 978-1-934901-11-3.
  34. ^ a b "Radicalized Prophets of the Far, Far Right", Sunstone, Oct. 2003, p. 39.
  35. ^ "Bo Gritz". The Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  36. ^ "Christian Identity". Anti-Defamation League. Archived from the original on 10 February 2017. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  37. ^ Neiwert, David (10 November 1994). "An Interview with Bo Gritz". The Militia Watchdog. Archived from the original on 6 October 2008. Retrieved 23 December 2008.
  38. ^ Weiss, Philip (8 January 1995). "Off the Grid". The New York Times.
  39. ^ "Patriot Leader Bo Gritz Shoots Himself Under Troubling Circumstances".
  40. ^ Carter, Gregg Lee (2002). Guns in American Society: An Encyclopedia of History, Politics, Culture, and the Law. ISBN 9781576072684.
  41. ^ "Bo Gritz".
  42. ^ Quarles, Chester L. (18 November 2014). Christian Identity: The Aryan American Bloodline Religion. ISBN 9780786481484.
  43. ^ "Almost Heaven almost defunct | the Spokesman-Review".
  44. ^ Snow, Robert J. (2002). Terrorists Among Us: The Militia Threat. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Perseus Books Group. p. 9. ISBN 0-7382-0766-7. OCLC 50615207.
  45. ^ "Gerry Spence on Why He Agreed to Defend Randy Weaver".
  46. ^ "'Bo' Gritz is Allowed to Meet with 'Freemen'". Los Angeles Times. 28 April 1996.
  47. ^ "War hero 'Bo' Gritz reflects on Ruby Ridge siege 28 years later". 18 September 2020.
  48. ^ Snow, Robert J. (2002). Terrorists Among Us: The Militia Threat. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Perseus Books Group. p. 216. ISBN 0-7382-0766-7. OCLC 50615207.
  49. ^ "Bo Gritz abandons negotiations with Montana Freemen".
  50. ^ "Bo Gritz says FBI has enlisted him in Rudolph search". CNN. 3 August 1998. Retrieved 22 December 2008.
  51. ^ "Congress Wages Feeding Tube War". CBS News. 19 March 2005. Retrieved 22 December 2008.
  52. ^ Americanvoiceradio.com
  53. ^ "Mail Orders". Bo Gritz. 2005. Archived from the original on 2009-02-20. Retrieved 2009-02-27.
  54. ^ Neiwert, David (Sep 28, 1998). "What kind of life do I have without my bride?". Salon. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  55. ^ Santos, Rubén Romero (27 September 2019). "La desquiciada vida del soldado que inspiró 'Rambo'". El País.
  56. ^ "James Bo Gritz - pierwowzór Rambo i jego prawdziwa historia".
  57. ^ Pico Iyer, "Colonel Gritz's Dubious Mission", Time, 1983-04-04.

External links

Party political offices
Preceded by Populist nominee for Vice President of the United States
Withdrew
1988
Served alongside: Trenton Stokes 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Populist nominee for President of the United States
1992 		Party abolished
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