John Lofton

John D. Lofton, Jr. (May 26, 1941 – September 17, 2014) was an American paleoconservative political commentator and editor of ''The American View'' radio program run by Michael Peroutka. Lofton was also a newspaper editor, a journalist, a columnist, and a political advisor. Describing himself as a "recovering Republican", Lofton was most closely allied with the Constitution Party.

Lofton edited ''Monday'', the weekly publication of the Republican National Committee, between 1970 and 1973. He later became a syndicated columnist for United Features Syndicate whose columns appeared in 100 newspapers between 1973 and 1980. He became a columnist for the ''Washington Times'' in 1982. During his seven years at the ''Washington Times'', Lofton became nationally known in print and on the nascent cable news circuit.

Lofton advised Pat Buchanan's presidential campaign and was the communications director for the 2004 Michael Peroutka presidential campaign.John Lofton's Biography from Peroutka2004.com
archived in the Wayback Machine)

Lofton made numerous appearances on political talk shows, including ''The Political Cesspool'', ''Politically Incorrect'', ''Scarborough Country'', and '' The Daily Show with Jon Stewart''.John Lofton on Lynne Cheney : Dispatches from the Culture Wars
He is perhaps best known for a 1986 appearance on ''Crossfire'' in which he debated musician Frank Zappa about the Parents Music Resource Center's campaign to identify music albums inappropriate for children. Lofton vehemently argued that the Founding Fathers of the United States did not mean to include lyrics like Zappa's under the protection of the First Amendment. He and Zappa argued while Zappa kept defending free speech, even if it implies taboo subject matter; in the debate, Lofton eventually called Zappa an idiot. Zappa responded, "Tell you what – kiss my ass! How do you like that?". The ''Crossfire'' video went viral after freeform radio station WFMU posted about it on its widely read blog in early 2006.WFMU's Beware of the Blog: Frank Zappa versus Robert Novak
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In a 1989 appearance on ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', Lofton and fellow conservative columnist Mona Charen debated two homosexual couples on the subjects of gay adoption and the-then novel concept of same-sex marriage. Both Lofton and Charen argued that legally sanctioning such marriages would undermine the fabric of the American family.

Lofton interviewed poet Allen Ginsberg in 1990 for '' Chronicles: A Magazine of American Culture''. The interview was subsequently reprinted in ''Harper's Magazine''.Allen Ginsberg Vs. John Lofton – A Nice Place
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Lofton died on September 17, 2014, of a heart condition.Lavoie, Luke (September 25, 2014
"John Lofton, conservative and passionate political writer [Obituary]"
''The Baltimore Sun''. Retrieved September 30, 2014.

References

External links

John Lofton's blog
on ''The American View''
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Lofton, John
1941 births
2014 deaths
American columnists
American male journalists
American magazine editors
American political commentators
American political writers
Maryland Republicans
Paleoconservatism
The Washington Times people