Over the last few years, Dr. Johnston has risen to a level of national prominence within the ranks of the Constitution Party while maintaining a family medical practice. Dr. James P. Johnston of Ohio's Genesis Health Care System appears to be a pleasant-enough young physician, and it wouldn't be surprising if his patients were unaware that -- dropping the "James" and operating as Dr. Patrick Johnston -- their family doctor has spent most of the last decade in highly unsavory company.

These days the relatively smooth phraseology of Johnston's "conservative" political philosophy is socially acceptable enough to blend right in with that of the Ohio GOP, but until he began his forays into "legitimate" politics with a highly visible presence in the Constitution Party -- and before Ohio decided that GOP stood for "God's Own Party" -- Johnston was a lot less careful about what he said, and about where he published it.

In what might have been an effort to assist Johnston's assimilation into public life, the Army of God has scrubbed his name from its list of "Heroes of the Faith," an honor roll featuring such anti-abortion luminaries as executed shotgun murderer Paul Hill, James Kopp, the "Atomic Dog" who killed Dr. Barnett Slepian from ambush, and John Salvi, the "hero" who murdered two clinic receptionists in Brookline, Massachusetts. Since the list is largely composed of violent criminals serving prison time for violent crimes, one wonders what Johnston did to qualify for inclusion. Maybe inciting others to murder was enough.

From Johnston's lengthy advocacy of the "blessing" of Bible-based murder, What the Bible Says Should Be Done to Abortionists:

"[T]he land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it."  Executing murderers was the only way to "put away the guilt of innocent blood."
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I'm not embarrassed to say what the punishment for the crime should be anymore than I'm embarrassed to admit that child-killing is a crime!  Murder is a capital crime, abortion is murder, therefore abortionists should be executed, so that the innocent may be defended and the curse of innocent blood be lifted off our land.  God's ways are benevolent and bring blessing, the autonomous ways of man are unloving and brings God's curse.

 

And although Talk to Action's own Michelle Goldberg witnessed Johnston's denial that he also has called for the execution of gays and lesbians, the Wayback Machine tells another story.

Homosexuality, incest, pedophilia, and bestiality are capital crimes, this keeps sex where God designed it to be, in the marriage bed, and it provides a strong impediment against sins that are particularly addictive and destructive (Have you ever noticed that Saudi Arabia doesn't have an AIDS crisis?)

 

Johnston's Web site used to feature