WW II vet said he fought on “wrong side” during war; was monitored by Mason City native for FBI
A World War II veteran who later became America’s “top Nazi sympathizer” was buried Feb. 17 at Arlington National cemetery, the hallowed ground where President John F. Kennedy is in eternal rest. Willis Carto died last October at the age of 89. As the recipient of a Purple Heart award, he was entitled to an ornate burial ceremony and service, with full military regalia and honors.
Mr. Carto founded the Liberty Lobby in 1955 as a lobbying organization dedicated to what many consider to be “Far Right” political causes. By 1985, Carto’s empire – which was based in Washington, D. C., and also featured offices in California, and Texas – included a weekly newspaper called SPOTLIGHT, to which over 400,000 readers subscribed. Carto and his German-born wife, Elisabeth, also operated the Institute for Historical Review, the SUN Radio Network, and magazines ranging from the American Mercury to The Barnes Review to The Journal of Historical Review.
Carto also owned another weekly newspaper called The American Free Press. His views weren’t merely on the far right of the political spectrum; he was an unabashed fan of Adolf Hitler, say sources who were familiar with his views and who knew him personally. During Carto’s empire’s 46-year existence, knowledgeable sources said that the interconnected ventures raised over $75 million and held assets of at least $20 million by 2001.
One man who knew him well and whose advertising agency represented The SPOTLIGHT and Carto’s SUN Radio network is Todd A. Blodgett, who grew up in Mason City. Mr. Blodgett, who had previously served on the White House staff of President Ronald Reagan, was unavailable for comment for this article. But according to published sources, Blodgett, through his D.C.-based advertising agency, sold advertising space and air time for the periodicals and electronic media which were owned by Liberty Lobby and its affiliates. Sources also indicate that Blodgett opposes Carto being laid to rest at Arlington cemetery. While working as a full-time, paid FBI informant the former presidential aide monitored Mr. Carto, David Duke, and other top-tier White Supremacists, according to The Washington Post, the Associated Press, Wikipedia, The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and other publications.
Blodgett and Carto were also co-owners of the world’s largest, most profitable racist record corporation. From its inception in 1995 until about 2002, the Southern Poverty Law Center and other credible sources claim that Resistance Records sold millions of dollars of racist and anti-semitic CD’s, DVD’s, and software for games which appealed to neo-Nazis, KKK members, Holocaust deniers, and White Supremacists. Carto and Blodgett parted ways in late 1998, after a bitter falling-out in which Carto owed Blodgett $87,000 in advertising commissions. Instead of paying Blodgett the cash, Carto issued him stock certificates representing the controlling share of Resistance Records, inc. The cause of Carto’s cash-flow problems was a $10 Million judgment against him and his wife, Elisabeth, brought by plaintiffs who claimed that the Cartos had embezzled $7 Million+ in funds from the Institute for Historical Review.
In a November, 2015 interview with HuffPost reporter Daniel Marans, Blodgett expressed disgust at how Carto, in the late 1990s, “bragged that he’d someday be buried at Arlington,” the nation’s foremost military cemetery.
Carto “laughed”, Blodgett said.
“He said he was “probably America’s biggest Hitler fan”, and was going to “be buried alongside all of those World War II vets.”
As NorthIowaToday.com was unable to get ahold of Mr. Blodgett, we contacted an NIT reader who is a longtime friend of his, Jim ‘Jimbo’ Burgess, of Mason City. Mr. Burgess was adamant in his view that his friend has been unfairly maligned. “Listen, I’ve been a good friend of Todd’s for over 40 years,” said Burgess. “No way is he a neo-Nazi, or anything of the kind. I think he probably took that gig [with Carto] to prove he could get a job that wasn’t lined up by Dr. Blodgett”, Burgess said, referring to Todd Blodgett’s father.
Gary B. Blodgett has long been regarded as the “Republican Kingmaker” of north Iowa politics. Blodgett represented Cerro Gordo county in the Iowa Legislature from 1992-2001, where he served as Deputy Majority Leader. He was later appointed by President George W. Bush as a federal administrative Judge in Washington, D. C., and was in office from 2001 to 2008. Dr. Blodgett and his wife, Sandy, live in Clear Lake.
Burgess also said, “Todd took me and a black buddy of ours to lunch awhile back, here in Mason City. I’ve been with Todd in houses here on the north End [of Mason City] when he and I were the only white people in those places. Anybody who calls him a racist either must not know him, or they’re liars.”
Irkness! Buying beers for some love. Addicted…yes. One replaces it with something else.. He doesn’t know IT ALL that’s for sure. He is a criminal in the LAWS word. May we add lazy to the summary.
Did you know Carto? How do you know he was lazy, and a criminal?
Why cant he be buried there? He meets all the guidelines for interment.
We use to think Mr Blodgett was up to no good, on count of his record CD business and that. Changed our mind’s tho, he helped our son’s girl friend get off the meth, he did. I think alot of them that hates on him, they do not know him, may be never have even met this man. He is to much Repub. for us, but he is a very nice person, he don’t deserve the shit some folks say.
According to a Mason City man who has befriended Blodgett for 40 years and counting, this spoiled, drug-addicted, cocky Republitard worked with (and got rich off of) neo-Nazis to prove he could get a job that wasn’t arranged by his daddy. Well, well. What I want to know is: how in Heaven’s name can anyone work, full time, for the FBI when they are a drug addict? The correct answer is, it simply does not matter when you are the entitled son of rich Republitard parents, who helped to get yet another rich, entitled, connected puke (Bush 2) in the White House. There’s just no end to what these Republitards slime balls, (i.e., Bush, Blodgett), will do for their own kind, I suppose.
@ Forever… I was in the audience when Mr. Blodgett spoke at our Rotary last fall. This question was asked of him. He said he was already addicted to cocaine when the FBI hired him. He was able to use drugs because he was a paid informant, not an agent. They did not test him for drugs like they do the agents. It does not become you to call Republicans Republi-tards. I suspect you do not know Todd. In person he is very well mannered, funny, and does not breathe fire. I am a Democrat, for your note.
Met Mr. Blodgett once, he was up to Past time’s, he was real nice. Told him we like to read his column’s, he bought me and the wife some beer’s.
Got to admit kinda cool, have this local “angle” on this thing. I do think it is just wrong, bury this crook that hate’s on everybody, that is not white in to the same grave yard has JFK in it. Holy mother Mary this is wrong I think.
Jerry, you can see it everywhere, this country is going to hell.
@ Allen, do you mean because this Nazi sympathizer was allowed to be buried there? The cemetery does not prevent the burial of anyone who qualifies, irrespective of their political beliefs. I am not happy about it, either. But to discriminate on the basis of politics would be even worse.