John G. Schmitz

John G. Schmitz

John George Schmitz (August 12, 1930 – January 10, 2001) was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives and California State Senate from Orange County, California. He was also a member of the John Birch Society. In 1972 he was the American Independent Party candidate for President of the United States.

Schmitz was notable for his extreme right-wing sympathies. By one measure, he was found to be the third most conservative member of Congress between 1937 and 2002 and the ultra-conservative John Birch Society, of which Schmitz was a longtime leader, later expelled him for extremist rhetoric.

On October 25, 1971 Schmitz composed an introduction to the highly controversial book None Dare Call it Conspiracy written by Gary Allen with Larry Abraham.

In 1982, after it was revealed—and Schmitz admitted—that he had engaged in an extra-marital affair and fathered two children with one of his former college students, Schmitz's career as a politician effectively ended, as did his wife Mary's as a conservative political commentator.

Two of Schmitz's children, sons John and Joseph, have held prominent posts in Republican presidential administrations. Son Joseph Schmitz has also worked for the international security firm Blackwater USA.

Schmitz died in 2001 at the age of 70 from prostate cancer; the former Marine Colonel was buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery.