Isn't it odd how Republican hacks are so determined to 'prove' that Lyndon B. Johnson was behind the hit on JFK?
First we had Barr McClellan (father of Scott McClellan, Bush's White House spokesman) writing a book that claims to be "An insider’s look at America’s greatest unsolved mystery" and yep, it's called Blood, Money, & Power: How LBJ Killed JFK. If I remember correctly, it was this tripe that got the History Channel in so much hot water when they presented programming based on this silliness.
Now we have yet another entry into the 'I'm an insider, and LBJ did it" sweepstakes: Roger Stone.
Stone's new book is called The Man Who Killed Kennedy and in case you don't know instantly who the man in question is the cover has a large photo of a smiling LBJ.
Stone describes himself in his short bio as follows:
Roger Stone is not only a political consultant, strategist, and lobbyist, but is also the man credited with taking down New York Governor, Eliot Spitzer. He has been involved in politics since his teenage and college years, and served as a senior staffer in eight national Republican Presidential Campaigns including those of Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. Stone is also credited with the destruction of the national Reform party and the shut-down of 2000 recount that made George W. Bush President. In 2012 Stone joined the Libertarian Party.
Wingnut credentials - check!
The first thing you'll notice when you browse the Editorial Reviews section of Amazon's listing are the quality of these 'editorial reviews' - in fact, they're worth a bit of a LULZ.
“Bombshell new evidence!” (National Enquirer)
“LBJ had Kennedy killed.” (Daily Caller)
“Explosive!” (Radaronline.com)
“Stone's book will change American history forever!” (Robert Morrow, historian)
Robert Morrow, historian, isn't given many biographical details here but there's a Robert Morrow who has the twitter handle @LBJCIAKILLEDJFK and he also claims that Chelsea Clinton's real father is Webb Hubbell. Perhaps the editorial review is from another Robert Morrow, historian, who thinks this crackpot book will change American history forever(!).
I admit that one editorial review stumped me; Kirkus Reviews is credible and not a crackpot source and this was quoted:
“Stone may be right . . . .” (Kirkus Reviews)
So I googled the full text and here's the
relevant passage from Kirkus Reviews:
In one memorable section about how Nixon learned of the assassination, Stone inserts a few paragraphs midstory about Johnson trying to keep Nixon from winning in 1968. In the end, readers are unsure of how Nixon’s lines of communication have anything to do with who killed Kennedy and are left wondering why a former Democratic president wouldn’t try to keep a Republican from winning the position. Stone does present some compelling evidence for his argument, but the scattered format and hatred for Johnson make it difficult to focus on those portions. He is at his most clear and convincing when simply pointing out the likelihood that there was some conspiracy afoot in the assassination rather than trying to prove that Johnson was at the helm.
Stone may be right, but his book is unlikely to convince anyone who doesn’t already agree.
I read the preview of the book. I refuse to pay for this crap but the preview had plenty of interesting tidbits.
In the introduction, he mentions his friendship with John Davis Lodge, Henry Cabot Lodge's brother. Stone asked him over drinks one night if his brother, who according to this account JFK was going to fire upon his return from Dallas, had ever indicated who killed Kennedy.
His lips spread in a tight grin. "Cabot said it was some Agency boys, some Mafioso," he looked me in the eye..."And Lyndon".
"Did your brother know in advance?" I asked.
Lodge took a sip of his Manhattan. "He knew Kennedy wouldn't be around to fire him. LBJ kept him at his post so he could serve his country."
Now, John Davis Lodge has been dead since 1985 and Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. died in the same year; conveniently, neither man left word of this bombshell. However, if I was a living Lodge relative I'd be fairly unhappy that Henry Cabot Lodge was essentially accused of a federal crime in this book. Stone claims this discussion took place in 1979, when Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. was still alive and could have been charged with conspiracy if he'd had foreknowledge of the assassination and kept it under wraps. It seems incredible that his brother would be publicizing this in a bullshitting session over drinks with a political hack like Stone.
Not only does he smear LBJ throughout the preview, he also - incredibly - smears Jack Kennedy, a man who was murdered in service to his country.
JFK was hopped up on meth during the presidential debates with Nixon, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, during the Bay of Pigs invasion, and presumably during his many sexual trysts
But he assures us throughout the introduction that this isn't a political hit piece! Incredible!
Other than claiming that Johnson had 8 people murdered, his 'bombshell' seems to be that Nixon believed that Ruby had ties to LBJ - and the evidence he presents for this is thin at best. If anything, the response he claimed Nixon had when he witnessed Ruby murder Oswald on television - "I know that guy" - could make a case that Nixon had closer ties to Ruby than Johnson. But in this fantasyland, conjecture is spun as truth.
I'll just end this with something that appears on Stone's twitter feed so you can judge for yourself what kind of man he is.