View source for Justin Raimondo

{{Short description|American journalist (1951–2019)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox person
 | name             = Justin Raimondo
 | image            = Justin Raimondo.jpg
 | caption          = Justin Raimondo
 | birth_name       = Dennis Raimondo
 | birth_date       = {{birth date|1951|11|18}}
 | birth_place      = [[White Plains, New York]], U.S.
 | death_date       = {{death date and age |2019|6|27|1951|11|18}}
 | death_place      = {{nowrap|[[Sebastopol, California]], U.S.}}
 | occupation       = Journalist, author, writer
 | spouse           = Yoshinori Abe<ref name="husband">{{cite web|url=https://original.antiwar.com/Antiwar_Staff/2019/06/27/justin-raimondo-rip-1951-2019/|title=Justin Raimondo, RIP (1951–2019)|work=Antiwar.com|date=June 27, 2019 }}</ref>
}}

{{Libertarianism sidebar}}
'''Justin Raimondo''' (born '''Dennis Raimondo'''; November 18, 1951 – June 27, 2019)<ref name="joincalifornia">{{cite web|url=http://www.joincalifornia.com/candidate/2787|title=JoinCalifornia – Justin Raimondo|work=joincalifornia.com}}</ref><ref name="dies">{{cite web|url=https://original.antiwar.com/Antiwar_Staff/2019/06/27/justin-raimondo-rip-1951-2019/|title=Justin Raimondo, RIP (1951–2019)
|work=Antiwar.com|date=June 27, 2019
}}</ref> was an American author and the editorial director of [[Antiwar.com]]. He described himself as a "[[Conservatism in the United States|conservative]]-[[Paleolibertarianism|paleo-libertarian]]."<ref>Justin Raimondo, [http://www.antiwar.com/justin/?articleid=12475 Commissar Frum: Former Presidential speechwriter smears antiwar conservatives], [[Antiwar.com]], March 22, 2003.</ref><ref name=warmachine>
 {{cite web
|author1=Jeff Deist|author2=Justin Raimondo
|title=Justin Raimondo: Against the War Machine
|url=http://mises.org/media/8596/Justin-Raimondo-Against-the-War-Machine|website=mises.org
|publisher=[[Ludwig von Mises Institute]]
|access-date=February 18, 2015
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140711043413/http://mises.org/media/8596/Justin-Raimondo-Against-the-War-Machine
|archive-date=July 11, 2014 |format=[[MP3]]
|date=July 3, 2014
}}</ref>

==Early life==
Born in [[White Plains, New York]], Raimondo moved with his family to Yorktown Heights, New York when he was very young. Raimondo described himself as a "bad kid"; to deter himself from this path he spent one year at a [[Jesuits|Jesuit]]-run school in upstate New York.

Around this time he took an interest in [[Ayn Rand]]'s philosophy of [[Objectivism]].<ref>Justin Raimondo: "One of Them", ''Chronicles. A Magazine of American Culture,'' June 2012.</ref> Later he joined [[Young Americans for Freedom]]. In the 1970s, he became active in the [[United States Libertarian Party|Libertarian Party]]. He "joined the party in 1974, and was active in [[Roger MacBride]]'s [[United States third party and independent presidential candidates, 1976|1976 presidential campaign]], the LP's second White House bid."<ref>Raimondo, Justin (June 14, 2000) [http://www.antiwar.com/justin/j061400.html Wild About Harry: Why I Am Not Voting Libertarian This Year], ''[[Antiwar.com]]''</ref> He came to the defense of the [[White Night riots]], which followed the manslaughter conviction of [[Dan White]] for the deaths of San Francisco supervisor [[Harvey Milk]] and Mayor [[George Moscone]].<ref name="Ho">{{cite news |last=Ho |first=Catherine |date=June 30, 2019 |title=Justin Raimondo, longtime Bay Area antiwar activist and writer, dies |url=https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Justin-Raimondo-longtime-Bay-Area-antiwar-14061759.php |access-date=July 1, 2019 |work=San Francisco Chronicle}}</ref>

In 1983, after a schism in the Libertarian Party, Raimondo left the party and attempted to organize a libertarian faction in the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] known as the Libertarian Republican Organizing Committee. After 1989, Raimondo again began working with Rothbard in the [[anti-war]], [[paleoconservative]] [[John Randolph Club]], part of the Rockford Institute.

==Career==
===Early activism===
In 1980, Raimondo ran for public office for the first time. Running as a Libertarian candidate for the 16th district seat in the [[California State Assembly]], Raimondo received 4,730 votes<ref name="joincalifornia" /> or 7.7% of the vote.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.joincalifornia.com/election/1980-11-04|title=JoinCalifornia – 11-04-1980 Election|work=joincalifornia.com}}</ref> In 1982, Raimondo ran for California's 5th district seat in the [[United States House of Representatives]] as a Libertarian, against [[U.S. Democratic Party|Democratic]] incumbent [[Phillip Burton]] and [[U.S. Republican Party|Republican]] challenger [[Milton Marks]]. He received 14.2% of the vote.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.joincalifornia.com/election/1982-11-02|title=JoinCalifornia – 11-02-1982 Election|work=joincalifornia.com}}</ref>

In the [[United States House of Representatives elections, 1996|1996 U.S. congressional elections]], Raimondo ran as a Republican candidate in California's 8th district against [[Nancy Pelosi]]. While he championed conservative and libertarian causes in general, the main emphasis of his campaign was his opposition to the deployment of U.S. troops in the [[Bosnian War|Balkans]] and, in particular, Pelosi's vote to that effect.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.antiwar.com/raimondo/news1.html|title=Raimondo for Congress|work=Antiwar.com}}</ref> Raimondo received 25,739 votes<ref>{{cite web|url=http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1996/96Stat.htm#5|title=96 Presidential and Congressional Election Statistics |work=house.gov}}</ref> for 12.4 percent of the vote while Pelosi got 84.3 percent.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cgi.cnn.com/ELECTION/CA08house.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010518224639/http://cgi.cnn.com/ELECTION/CA08house.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 18, 2001|title=AllPolitics – California House 08 Election Results|work=cnn.com}}</ref>

During the [[U.S. presidential election, 1992|1992]], [[U.S. presidential election, 1996|1996]], and [[U.S. presidential election, 2000|2000 presidential elections]], Raimondo supported the campaigns of [[Pat Buchanan]], both as a Republican and in the [[Reform Party USA|Reform Party]]. As he was an [[coming out|out]] gay man,<ref name="sfweekly">{{cite news|last=Anderson|first=Lessley|url=http://www.sfweekly.com/2003-12-10/news/intrepid-antiwarriors-of-the-libertarian-right-stake-their-rightful-claim-to-power/full|title=Intrepid Antiwarriors of the Libertarian Right Stake Their Rightful Claim to Power|work=[[SF Weekly]]|date=December 10, 2003|access-date=June 28, 2019}}</ref> his support of the [[Social conservatism|social conservative]] Buchanan attracted considerable attention.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metroactive.com/papers/metro/02.29.96/public-eyem-9609.html|title=Metro Features – Public Eye|work=metroactive.com}}</ref> The idea he "wants to round us all up and send us to concentration camps is just a bunch of crap. It's a lie and a smear. He welcomes gay workers in his campaign. He does not think that homosexuality is all that great a thing. But I don't need his approval. Why does any gay person need anyone's benediction?"<ref>{{cite news|last=Herron|first=Jim Zamora|url=https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Gay-Buchanan-backer-defends-his-candidate-3158371.php|title=Gay Buchanan backer defends his candidate|work=SF Gate|publisher=[[San Francisco Chronicle]]|date=February 23, 1996|access-date=June 28, 2019}}</ref>

In 1994, Raimondo was the San Francisco coordinator for the "Save our State" [[Proposition 187]], which would have barred taxpayer funding of non-emergency services to [[illegal aliens]] in California.<ref>Rothbard, Murray. "[http://archive.lewrockwell.com/rothbard/ir/Ch16.html Big Government Libertarians]." November 1994.</ref> The measure was passed by California voters, but was later stayed by a federal court.{{citation needed|date=December 2019}}

===Antiwar.com and later activities===
Raimondo and [[Eric Garris]] launched  [[Antiwar.com]] in 1995.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/gay-rights-antiwar-activist-justin-raimondo-dies-67-64050668|title=Gay rights, anti-war activist Justin Raimondo dies at 67|work=ABC News|agency=Associated Press|date=June 30, 2019|access-date=July 1, 2019}}</ref> In 1999, during the [[Presidency of Bill Clinton|Clinton administration]]'s military intervention in the [[1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia|Kosovo war]], the site became a full-time effort, providing a platform for the pair's opposition to foreign intervention. Raimondo was a vocal critic of the [[2003 invasion of Iraq|invasion of Iraq]] in 2003 and the [[Post-invasion Iraq, 2003–present|ongoing occupation]].

In the [[U.S. presidential election, 2004|2004 presidential election]], he wrote approvingly of candidate [[Ralph Nader]] in an article published in ''[[The American Conservative]]''. "Nader’s distrust of bigness, either corporate or governmental, his fear of centralized power, his sharp critique of the managerial-bureaucratic mentality, all recall the distinctively American tradition of individualist populism", he wrote.<ref>{{cite news|last=Raimondo|first=Justin|url=http://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/old-right-nader/|title=Old Right Nader|work=The American Conservative|date=November 8, 2004|access-date=June 28, 2019}}</ref>

Raimondo wrote positively about [[Ron Paul presidential campaign, 2008|Ron Paul's 2008 presidential campaign]], but expressed support for [[Dennis Kucinich]].<ref>Raimondo, Justin (September 27, 2010) [http://original.antiwar.com/justin/2010/09/16/make-noise/ Make Noise!]</ref> Unlike [[Ron Paul]] and his son, [[Rand Paul|Rand]], however, Raimondo supported abortion: "The libertarian position is unequivocal: the mother has the absolute right to abortion, period."<ref>{{cite news|last=Weigel|first=David|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2015/07/30/why-arent-libertarians-rejecting-rand-pauls-fight-against-planned-parenthood|title=Why aren't libertarians rejecting Rand Paul's fight against Planned Parenthood?|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=July 30, 2015|access-date=June 28, 2019}}</ref> He was critical of [[Barack Obama]]'s Cabinet choices as President<ref>Ditz, Jason (November 20, 2008) [http://news.antiwar.com/2008/11/20/antiwar-groups-fear-hawkish-cabinet/ Antiwar Groups Fear Hawkish Cabinet], ''[[Antiwar.com]]''</ref> along with the President himself. However, when Obama nominated former Nebraska U.S. Senator [[Chuck Hagel]] for [[U.S. Secretary of Defense]] to succeed [[Leon Panetta]], Raimondo came out in support for Hagel.

In [[2016 United States presidential election|2016]], he voted for [[Donald Trump]] on the basis of his foreign policy.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://radio.foxnews.com/2016/12/29/do-you-have-trump-derangement-syndrome/|title=Do You Have 'Trump Derangement Syndrome?'|work=Fox News|date=December 29, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161231075826/http://radio.foxnews.com/2016/12/29/do-you-have-trump-derangement-syndrome/ |archive-date=December 31, 2016 |url-status=dead  }}</ref>

==Opinions==
{{listen |filename=Justin Raimondo Against the War Machine.ogg |title=Justin Raimondo: Against the War Machine |description=Jeff Deist and Justin Raimondo discuss the early history of the modern libertarian movement, Justin's time working with [[Murray Rothbard]] on libertarian strategy, and the chances for developing a broad new anti-war coalition.}}

===Major ideas and recurring themes===
Raimondo argued in a 2003 Antiwar.com column that Israel exerts a dominant force in the formulation of American foreign policy.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.antiwar.com/justin/j100603.html|title=Israel Is the Problem, by Justin Raimondo|work=antiwar.com}}</ref> Raimondo also believed that the United States was led into [[World War II]] through lies by President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] and that the U.S. deliberately provoked a war with Japan through economic sanctions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.antiwar.com/justin/?articleid=3076|title=Yasukuni Brouhaha |work=Antiwar.com Original|date=August 17, 2001 }}</ref> Raimondo's views were compared by [[Christopher Hitchens]] to those of [[Charles Lindbergh]],<ref>[[Christopher Hitchens|Hitchens, Christopher]]. [https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2006/05/blood-for-no-oil/4798/ Blood for No Oil!], ''[[The Atlantic]]'' (May 2006)</ref> whom Raimondo once described as an "American hero sprung from the heartland."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://antiwar.com/justin/?articleid=7908|title=Smearing Fitzgerald – Antiwar.com Original|work=Antiwar.com Original|date=November 4, 2005 }}</ref> Raimondo also wrote that Israeli intelligence operating in the U.S. had advance knowledge of the [[September 11, 2001 attacks]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.antiwar.com/justin/j032202.html|title=The Truth, At Last|work=antiwar.com}}</ref>

Raimondo believed that the government should refrain from adopting laws that would prohibit discrimination against homosexuals. "I think gays should have the right to discriminate against straight people if they want", he said in 2003.<ref name="sfweekly"/> He also opposed the legal recognition of [[same-sex marriage]] and instead favored [[marriage privatization]].<ref>Raimondo, Justin (April 4, 2011) [http://www.amconmag.com/blog/the-libertarian-case-against-gay-marriage/ The Libertarian Case Against Gay Marriage], ''[[The American Conservative]]''</ref> Raimondo debated the issue of same-sex marriage with journalist [[Jonathan Rauch]], who supports it.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.libertylawsite.org/2013/05/02/why-not-gay-marriage/|title=Why Not Gay Marriage? – Law & Liberty|date=May 2, 2013|access-date=November 28, 2018}}</ref> He also argued that after years of persecution by the state, [[LGBT rights]] activists sought to "use the battering ram of government power" to actively intervene on behalf of homosexuals.<ref>Justin Raimondo, [http://www.anti-state.com/raimondo/raimondo1.html Gay Victimology and the Liberal Kulturkampf]</ref>

===Religious views===
Though raised a Catholic, Raimondo described himself as "not a believer."<ref>[http://www.antiwar.com/justin/j122903.html Pope John Paul II: Man of the Year] December 29, 2003</ref> Raimondo further described his early interactions with the [[Catholic Church]] and a local [[Society of Jesus|Jesuit]] [[seminary]] in Yorktown Heights as being influential in his development, despite rejecting the notion of God.<ref name=warmachine/> He described being "taken with their engagement with ideas" and discussions of philosophy, which he was lacking in traditional schools or from classmates at the time.<ref name=warmachine/>

==Death==
Raimondo died of stage IV lung cancer on June 27, 2019, in [[Sebastopol, California]].<ref name="survived">{{cite web|url=https://original.antiwar.com/Antiwar_Staff/2019/06/27/justin-raimondo-rip-1951-2019/|title=Justin Raimondo, RIP (1951–2019)|work=Antiwar.com|date=June 27, 2019 }}</ref> He was survived by his husband, Yoshinori Abe, and two sisters.<ref name="Ho"/>

==See also==
* [[List of peace activists]]

==Bibliography==
'''Articles'''

In addition to his thrice-weekly column for Antiwar.com, Raimondo was a regular contributor to ''[[The American Conservative]]'' and ''[[Chronicles magazine]]''. He formerly wrote twice-monthly columns for ''[[Taki's Magazine|Taki's Top Drawer]]'', but ceased in 2009.

'''Books'''
* ''Reclaiming the American Right: The Lost Legacy of the Conservative Movement''. [[Center for Libertarian Studies]], 1993. Reissued by [[Intercollegiate Studies Institute]] in 2008 with new introduction by [[George W. Carey]]. {{ISBN|978-1933859606}}.
* ''[https://archive.org/details/intobosnianquagm00raim Into the Bosnian Quagmire: The Case Against U.S. Intervention in the Balkans]''. Burlingame, CA: America First Books-America First Political Action Committee, 1996. {{ISBN|978-1883959012}}.
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=h-Iy3rfBa4oC ''Colin Powell and the Power Elite''.] Burlingame, CA: America First Books-America First Political Action Committee, 1996. {{ISBN|1883959039}}.
* ''An Enemy of the State: The Life of Murray N. Rothbard''. Amherst, NY: [[Prometheus Books]], 2000. {{ISBN|978-1615922390}}.
* ''The Terror Enigma: 9/11 and the Israeli Connection''. iUniverse, November 2003. {{ISBN|0595296823}}.

'''Book contributions'''
* [https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780737711820/page/100/ "Gays and Lesbians Should Not be Given Special Rights".] [https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780737711820 ''Homosexuality''], edited by Helen Cothran. San Diego: [[Greenhaven Press]], 2003, pp.&nbsp;100–103. {{ISBN|978-0737711820}}.
* [https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780737737462/page/184/ "The United States Should Not Intervene in Darfur".] [https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780737737462/ ''Human Rights''.] Detroit: [[Greenhaven Press]], 2008, pp.&nbsp;185–192. {{ISBN|978-0737737455}}.
* [https://archive.org/details/war0000unse_i9c3/page/134/ "America is Losing the War on Terror".] [https://archive.org/details/war0000unse_i9c3 ''War''.] Detroit: [[Greenhaven Press]], 2014, pp.&nbsp;135–141. {{ISBN|978-0737769715}}.

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* [http://antiwar.com/justin/ Raimondo Articles at AntiWar.com]
* [http://www.antiwar.com/justin/justinarchives.html Justin Raimondo's AntiWar Archives]
* [https://www.theamericanconservative.com/author/justin-raimondo/ Articles at American Conservative]
* {{C-SPAN|45659}}
* {{Twitter}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Raimondo, Justin}}
[[Category:1951 births]]
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