A Long Tradition of Fringe Parties and Paranoia

The fringe candidates in this election cycle – Cynthia McKinney of the Green Party, Bob Barr of the Libertarians, Chuck Baldwin of the Constitution Party, Ralph Nader in his independent run – all to some extent rely on deeply paranoid conspiracy theories to power their campaigns. In this, they honor a long and embarrassing tradition for third parties, who have usually blamed their own lack of power or influence on the diabolical plots of some secretive group or another.

In fact, the first significant third party in American history arose from fears that a popular fraternal organization actually constituted a murderous power elite that threatened the very foundations of the Republic. The Anti-Masonic Party won startling success in the 1820’s and ‘30’s by focusing on wild suppositions concerning the mysterious disappearance of a hard-drinking bricklayer in upstate New York. William Morgan fell deeply into debt in 1826 and began quarreling with fellow members of the local Masonic lodge in Batavia, then threatened to make some money by writing a sensational book revealing the dark secrets of Freemasonry. On September 11th (!) authorities arrested him for his unpaid debts and a group of Masons abducted him from the village jail. Morgan never returned and no one ever found his body, but accounts of his alleged murder became a national sensation –while the Masons denied all wrong-doing.